Erste Group Bank Upgrades Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Erste Group Bank upgraded Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating, signaling increased optimism among analysts about the stock's potential for growth.
• Bank of America has recently authorized a $40 billion stock repurchase plan, indicating that the board believes the stock is undervalued.
• The company's current consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $52.88, supported by positive earnings performance relative to analysts' expectations.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) was upgraded by analysts at Erste Group Bank from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Finviz reports.

BAC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Baird R W downgraded shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Phillip Securities downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen raised Bank of America from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Bank of America from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.88.

Bank of America Stock Performance

NYSE:BAC opened at $50.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $373.57 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.33. Bank of America has a 52-week low of $33.06 and a 52-week high of $52.88.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.79 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 14.81%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. Analysts forecast that Bank of America will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,180,656.99. This represents a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BAC. Nova Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Bank of America by 246.5% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 523 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 48.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC now owns 681 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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