Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Trading Up 1.3% Following Dividend Announcement

Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)'s stock price shot up 1.3% on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $39.28 and last traded at $39.24. 14,988,095 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 39,003,622 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.75.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Bank of America from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on Bank of America from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.25.

Bank of America Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company's 50 day moving average price is $40.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.60. The stock has a market cap of $302.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.24.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.10. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The business had revenue of $27.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.83 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Bank of America

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc grew its position in Bank of America by 3,883.2% during the fourth quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc now owns 559,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 545,936 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Bank of America in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Vega Investment Solutions purchased a new position in Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 70.71% of the stock is currently 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.