Smead Capital Management Inc. Decreases Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Smead Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,169,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 219,624 shares during the quarter. Bank of America comprises approximately 3.6% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Smead Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $174,339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BAC. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 640.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 46,516,728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,399,798,000 after buying an additional 40,235,201 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 651,076,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,809,225,000 after purchasing an additional 23,351,183 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 11.0% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 144,371,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,448,816,000 after purchasing an additional 14,275,810 shares during the last quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 1,248.5% in the fourth quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 15,224,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $837,338,000 after purchasing an additional 14,095,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Bank of America in the third quarter valued at about $224,863,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:BAC opened at $51.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The business’s 50 day moving average is $50.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.38. Bank of America Corporation has a 52 week low of $42.35 and a 52 week high of $57.55. The company has a market cap of $367.64 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.11. Bank of America had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 16.78%.The company had revenue of $30.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. Bank of America’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.46 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.72%.

Bank of America News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America hired veteran banker Richard Hardegree as Vice Chair of Mergers and Acquisitions, a move that could strengthen its dealmaking franchise and support future investment-banking revenue. Bank of America Corporation (BAC) Hires Richard Hardegree as Vice Chair of Mergers and Acquisitions
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted BAC’s loan growth, rising investment-banking fees, and AI-driven branch strategy as long-term positives that may help the stock recover despite this year’s pullback. BAC Slips 6.5% So Far This Year: Should You Still Buy the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America strategist Michael Hartnett warned that mega-IPOs like SpaceX and OpenAI could create tech-market concentration risk, which is important for investors but does not directly change BAC’s fundamentals. BofA’s Hartnett Warns Mega-IPOs Risk Bubble Like Roaring ‘20s
• Neutral Sentiment: BofA also reinstated coverage of nuclear names with a Buy on Oklo and Neutral on NuScale, showing continued activity from the bank’s research team rather than a direct catalyst for BAC shares. BofA reinstates nuclear coverage with Buy on Oklo and Neutral on NuScale
• Negative Sentiment: CFRA downgraded Bank of America to Hold, adding a modest headwind as investors weigh valuation and near-term upside after the stock’s weaker year-to-date performance. CFRA downgrades Bank of America (BAC) to a Hold

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Daiwa Securities Group increased their price target on Bank of America from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Bank of America from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Bank of America from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. HSBC increased their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.06.

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 83,832 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $4,191,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 307,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,362,000. This trade represents a 21.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 94,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.94, for a total value of $4,412,360.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 170,184 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,988,436.96. This represents a 35.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 354,588 shares of company stock worth $17,814,296. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Bank of America Profile

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.