Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Trading 0.2% Higher – Time to Buy?

Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) shot up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $42.47 and last traded at $42.37. 7,716,016 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 38,642,402 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.30.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BAC shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Bank of America from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Cfra reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.69.

Bank of America Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $40.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.55. The stock has a market cap of $325.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.31, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.33.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $25.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.25 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 12.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bank of America Co. will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is 37.82%.

Bank of America declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other news, insider Lindsay D. Hans sold 10,901 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.91, for a total value of $402,355.91. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $402,577.37. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Lindsay D. Hans sold 10,901 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.91, for a total transaction of $402,355.91. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $402,577.37. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 5,264,601 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $216,901,561.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 961,646,715 shares in the company, valued at $39,619,844,658. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 125,336,839 shares of company stock valued at $5,049,968,704 over the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BAC. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. raised its position in Bank of America by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 44,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,784,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 13.9% in the third quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 9,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 1,113 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in Bank of America by 21.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 23,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $940,000 after purchasing an additional 4,156 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 129.9% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 25,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,004,000 after buying an additional 14,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 18,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 2,594 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services for individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, institutional investors, large corporations, and governments worldwide. It operates in four segments: Consumer Banking, Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM), Global Banking, and Global Markets.