Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-one have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $64.0833.

BAC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Bank of America from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Bank of America from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Bank of America from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Bank of America from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th.

Key Headlines Impacting Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: An analysis argues that Bank of America’s valuation remains attractive, potentially supporting the shares if earnings and profitability continue to improve. Bank of America: The Valuation Still Works
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s research team remains constructive on technology and artificial-intelligence beneficiaries, including SK hynix and Meta Platforms. This highlights the strength of BofA’s investment-banking and research franchise, although the calls do not directly change BAC’s earnings outlook. Bank of America Is Bullish on SK hynix Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory filings show Bank of America or controlled entities holding more than 5% of QIAGEN and Hateks. These disclosures appear to reflect investment or client-related positions and are not evidence of a material change to BAC’s core business. Bank of America Reveals Indirect Stake in QIAGEN Bank of America Lifts Stake in Hateks
• Negative Sentiment: Weakness in preferred shares issued by BAC and other major banks suggests investors are pricing in interest rates remaining elevated. Higher-for-longer rates can raise funding costs and weigh on bond portfolios and valuation multiples. Bank Preferred Stocks Are Sending a Warning About Interest Rates

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of America

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Bank of America by 5,515.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 586,149,556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,398,802,000 after purchasing an additional 575,711,933 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter valued at $4,774,210,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 57,619,317 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,169,062,000 after purchasing an additional 2,929,779 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 53,783,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,958,110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105,833 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 47,172,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,594,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,611,776 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of BAC opened at $62.77 on Thursday. 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 50 day moving average price of $61.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.43. Bank of America has a fifty-two week low of $46.12 and a fifty-two week high of $65.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $438.97 billion, a PE ratio of 14.40, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.15.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $31.56 billion for 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%. Bank of America’s revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Bank of America will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This is an increase from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America’s payout ratio is presently 29.36%.

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) is a diversified financial services company serving individual consumers, businesses, institutional investors and governments. Its operations include consumer banking, credit and debit cards, mortgages, small-business banking, commercial banking, investment banking, securities trading and investment management.

The company provides consumer and wealth-management services through Bank of America and Merrill, including deposit accounts, lending, brokerage, retirement planning, financial advice and private banking.