Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $53.99 and last traded at $53.5160, with a volume of 4428199 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.20.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on BAC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank of America in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Bank of America from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.86.

Bank of America Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $392.82 billion, a PE ratio of 14.66, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.63.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $28.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.05 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Bank of America’s payout ratio is presently 30.52%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Bank of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Nova Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 75.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Bank of America by 246.5% in the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Steph & Co. grew its position in shares of Bank of America by 224.3% during the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 585.4% in the 2nd quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 610 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.