Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Trading 1.1% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Bank of America shares rose 1.1% after JPMorgan raised its price target from $62.50 to $68.00 and maintained an “Overweight” rating.
• Wall Street sentiment remains favorable, with 21 analysts rating BAC a Buy and six a Hold; the consensus price target is $64.00.
• Recent quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.21 and revenue of $31.56 billion, while the quarterly dividend increased to $0.32 per share.

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) shot up 1.1% on Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $62.50 to $68.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Bank of America traded as high as $61.93 and last traded at $61.7550. 24,441,034 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 38,541,918 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.07.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Bank of America from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of America presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.00.

Insider Activity

In other Bank of America news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total value of $6,719,335.56. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,373,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at $72,803,774.97. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

More Bank of America News

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raises BAC price target: JPMorgan upgraded Bank of America to “Overweight” and lifted its price target from $62.50 to $68.00, implying additional upside and reinforcing positive Wall Street sentiment.
• Positive Sentiment: Higher earnings expectations: Erste Group increased its Bank of America EPS forecasts to $4.64 for 2026 and $5.20 for 2027, citing improved earnings prospects. The estimates are broadly in line with consensus for 2026 and above consensus for 2027. Erste Group raises Bank of America earnings estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Financial-sector rotation: Investors have been reallocating money from high-priced AI and semiconductor stocks into financials, which have benefited from strong investment-banking activity, AI-related financing fees, solid Q2 results and comparatively modest valuations. BAC trades at roughly 13–14 times earnings and recently raised its dividend by 14% to $0.32 per share. Bank stocks and financial-sector rotation
• Positive Sentiment: AI adoption may support profitability: A recent valuation analysis argues that Bank of America remains reasonably priced despite its substantial three-year rally. Increased use of AI in operations and client services could improve efficiency and support future earnings growth. Bank of America valuation and AI expansion analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Strong recent fundamentals: Bank of America’s latest quarterly report exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.21 versus $1.13 expected and revenue of $31.56 billion versus $30.78 billion expected. Consumer spending also remained resilient, providing support for near-term operating performance.
• Negative Sentiment: Federal Reserve uncertainty remains a risk: Wall Street analysts criticized Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s explanation for holding rates steady despite persistent inflation. Uncertainty over the timing and direction of future rate decisions could increase volatility for BAC and pressure bank stocks’ recent leadership. Wall Street reaction to the Fed decision

Institutional Trading of Bank of America

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,774,210,000. Capital International Investors bought a new stake in Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,357,461,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 640.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 46,516,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,399,798,000 after buying an additional 40,235,201 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Bank of America by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 651,076,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,809,225,000 after buying an additional 23,351,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 914.5% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 25,095,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,380,239,000 after buying an additional 22,621,546 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Trading Up 1.1%

The company has a market cap of $438.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.The business had revenue of $31.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. The business's revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.36%.

Bank of America Company Profile

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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