Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Bank of America has a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy", based on coverage from 27 analysts; 22 rate it a buy and five rate it a hold. The average 1-year price target is about $61.06.
• The company recently reported strong quarterly results, with earnings per share of $1.11 versus the $1.00 expected and revenue of $30.27 billion, topping estimates. Revenue rose 10.7% year over year.
• Bank of America also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, payable June 26, which implies an annualized dividend of $1.12 and a yield of 2.2%. Institutional ownership remains high at 70.71%, even as insiders sold shares in recent months.

Shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-seven analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $61.0625.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on BAC shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Bank of America from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Argus raised their price objective on Bank of America from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Bank of America from $62.00 to $63.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. HSBC raised their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Bank of America from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th.

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In other Bank of America news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total transaction of $6,719,335.56. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,373,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $72,803,774.97. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider James P. Demare sold 83,832 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $4,191,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 307,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,362,000. The trade was a 21.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 354,588 shares of company stock worth $17,814,296. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 4,629,553 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $254,625,000 after purchasing an additional 1,603,080 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 54.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 58,308 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,008,000 after purchasing an additional 20,591 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of America in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $482,000. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 26.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. now owns 198,918 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,262,000 after purchasing an additional 41,809 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 677,919 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,974,000 after purchasing an additional 68,093 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.0%

Bank of America stock opened at $51.81 on Tuesday. Bank of America has a 1-year low of $42.35 and a 1-year high of $57.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $367.64 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's fifty day moving average is $50.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.36.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.11. Bank of America had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 16.78%.The company had revenue of $30.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.72 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. Bank of America's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Bank of America will post 4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.72%.

About Bank of America

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.

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