Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,807,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 607,828 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $650,803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Collier Financial bought a new position in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 3,883.2% in the 4th quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc now owns 559,995 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 545,936 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Bank of America in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 152.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BAC opened at $46.98 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $360.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.59, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s fifty day moving average is $45.75 and its 200 day moving average is $43.10. Bank of America Co. has a 52 week low of $32.49 and a 52 week high of $48.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.05. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The firm had revenue of $25.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.70 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Co. will post 3.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Bank of America’s payout ratio is 32.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.58.

Bank of America 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.