Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Trading 1.2% Higher - Here's What Happened

Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) was up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $43.86 and last traded at $43.71. Approximately 10,127,263 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 39,679,613 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on BAC shares. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $49.50 to $43.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.50.

Bank of America Stock Down 0.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $332.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $40.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.57.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $27.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.83 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,226,989,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 88,210,527 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,876,853,000 after buying an additional 17,031,143 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 45.1% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 48,112,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,007,718,000 after buying an additional 14,960,086 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 122,437,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,381,126,000 after buying an additional 11,691,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 37.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 37,819,980 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,747,658,000 after buying an additional 10,231,001 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Company Profile

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.