Bank of America Corporation $BAC Shares Sold by JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd

JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd cut its stake in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 29.3% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 241,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 100,000 shares during the period. Bank of America makes up 1.1% of JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $11,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nova Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 75.2% during the second quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 585.4% during the 2nd quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 610 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Acima Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America during the 1st quarter worth $40,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Stock Up 1.7%

BAC opened at $51.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $379.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a 50-day moving average of $50.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $45.79. Bank of America Corporation has a 12 month low of $33.06 and a 12 month high of $52.88.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $28.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.05 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 15.70%.The firm’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.81 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This is an increase from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. The trade was a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on BAC shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 target price (up previously from $57.00) on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Thursday. Finally, HSBC boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.76.

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.