Bank of America Corporation $BAC Shares Acquired by Mufg Securities Americas Inc.

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 8.1% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 215,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,260 shares during the period. Bank of America comprises 0.6% of Mufg Securities Americas Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Mufg Securities Americas Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $12,302,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BAC. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Bank of America by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 4,629,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $254,625,000 after acquiring an additional 1,603,080 shares in the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 45.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 40,994 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,336,000 after purchasing an additional 12,794 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,089,000. Bernicke Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,132,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 45,411,913 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,497,655,000 after purchasing an additional 1,487,809 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on BAC. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Bank of America from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Bank of America from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $62.50 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.08.

Bank of America Stock Performance

NYSE BAC opened at $62.38 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $61.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.90. The company has a market capitalization of $436.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.31, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.17. Bank of America Corporation has a 1-year low of $46.12 and a 1-year high of $65.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.The company had revenue of $31.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. Bank of America’s revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.69%.

Bank of America News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s artificial-intelligence initiatives and branch expansion are expected to improve operating efficiency and customer service. The potential for productivity gains supports the long-term earnings case, although elevated expenses remain a risk. Should You Buy BAC Stock as AI-Led Branch Expansion Boosts Efficiency?
• Positive Sentiment: Strong inflows into gold and cryptocurrency funds reported by BofA suggest elevated client demand for investment products. That activity could benefit the bank’s wealth-management, brokerage and trading businesses, though the impact on BAC’s earnings is indirect.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America disclosed holdings of approximately 4.69% and 5.87% in QIAGEN, reflecting regulatory notifications about its investment position. The disclosures may attract attention but do not materially change BAC’s core banking outlook. Bank of America Discloses 5.87% Stake in QIAGEN
• Neutral Sentiment: BofA strategists warned that global equities could face an autumn “reality check” tied to the U.S. midterm elections and geopolitical developments. A market pullback could weigh on BAC through lower investment-banking, asset-management and trading activity. Bank of America Warns of an Autumn Reality Check
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan is hiring senior technology dealmaker David Fishman from Bank of America. Losing an experienced M&A executive could weaken BAC’s technology investment-banking franchise and adds to competitive pressure. JPMorgan Hiring Bank of America’s David Fishman
• Negative Sentiment: The SEC is reportedly investigating margin lending to hedge fund Situational Awareness after a 67% drawdown, with Bank of America among the subpoenaed banks. Potential legal, credit and reputational risks could pressure sentiment. SEC Probe Puts Wall Street Leverage Risk Back in Focus
• Negative Sentiment: BAC is challenging proposed changes to the Federal Reserve’s global systemically important bank capital surcharge. Higher capital requirements could constrain lending, reduce balance-sheet flexibility and pressure returns on equity. Bank of America Joins Clash Over Fed GSIB Capital Rule

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.