Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $54.69 and last traded at $54.4570, with a volume of 7371426 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on BAC shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank of America from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Bank of America from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target (up previously from $57.00) on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.77.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.9%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $52.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $398.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.88 and a beta of 1.30.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $5.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.05 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 15.70%.The company’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.52%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of America

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Riverview Capital Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Bank of America by 4.2% during the third quarter. Riverview Capital Advisers LLC now owns 4,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $242,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Bank of America by 0.3% in the third quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 60,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,110,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 1.4% in the third quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. now owns 14,020 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $723,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its stake in Bank of America by 1.6% in the third quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 13,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motive Wealth Advisors grew its position in shares of Bank of America by 3.6% during the third quarter. Motive Wealth Advisors now owns 5,910 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.