Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases Shares of 79,200 Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 79,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,126,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at $4,774,210,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,571,060,000. Capital International Investors purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $2,357,461,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter valued at $2,359,172,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter valued at $2,313,953,000. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America Stock Up 2.0%

NYSE BAC opened at $62.38 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $61.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $436.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.17. Bank of America Corporation has a one year low of $46.12 and a one year high of $65.22.

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

Bank of America Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BAC shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Bank of America from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Argus set a $70.00 price objective on Bank of America in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Bank of America from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $64.08.

More Bank of America News

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.