Beaton Management Co. Inc. Cuts Holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Beaton Management Co. Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 82,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 233 shares during the period. Bank of America makes up approximately 1.8% of Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $3,627,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 31,021.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 10,207,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $405,049,000 after purchasing an additional 10,175,100 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in Bank of America by 81.4% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 12,776,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $561,513,000 after buying an additional 5,733,810 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 130.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,692,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $425,976,000 after acquiring an additional 5,493,817 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 193.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 7,608,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $301,898,000 after acquiring an additional 5,015,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Bank of America by 3,550.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,547,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,804,560,000 after purchasing an additional 4,423,215 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Stock Up 1.4 %

BAC opened at $46.98 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $45.75 and its 200-day moving average is $43.12. Bank of America Co. has a one year low of $32.49 and a one year high of $48.08. The company has a market capitalization of $360.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $25.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. Bank of America’s revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Bank of America Co. will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group raised Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $43.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays increased their target price on Bank of America from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bank of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.58.

About Bank of America

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.