Focused Alpha LLC Makes New Investment in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Focused Alpha LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 13,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $742,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BAC. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new position in Bank of America during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Bank of America by 167.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC increased its stake in Bank of America by 69.9% in the 2nd quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of America during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 199.1% during the 1st quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Bank of America from $69.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Argus set a $70.00 price target on Bank of America in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Bank of America from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Oppenheimer cut Bank of America from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Bank of America from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.52.

Bank of America Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of BAC stock opened at $50.38 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $58.78 and a 200-day moving average of $56.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Bank of America Corporation has a 12-month low of $46.12 and a 12-month high of $65.22. The firm has a market cap of $352.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.97, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $29.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.58 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 12.15%. Bank of America’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. Bank of America’s payout ratio is currently 30.40%.

Trending Headlines about Bank of America

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of America this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Morgan Stanley reportedly believe much of the regulatory and earnings-related bad news may already be reflected in the share price, arguing that BAC could have meaningful upside if its operating performance improves. Bank of America’s bad news may not be what investors think
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America has reduced its share count by nearly one-third over the past decade, highlighting a long-term capital-allocation benefit for remaining shareholders. Bank of America Has Cut Its Share Count by Nearly a Third in 10 Years
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America analysts continue to see a case for an October Federal Reserve rate hike, which could support bank net-interest income if higher rates persist. Why BofA still sees an October Fed rate hike

Bank of America Profile

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides banking, lending, investment, payments and financial management services to consumers, businesses, institutional investors and governments.

The company’s consumer banking operations offer checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans and other consumer financial products. Through Merrill, Bank of America provides wealth management, investment advisory, brokerage and retirement services.