Ascent Group LLC Sells 25,843 Shares of Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its holdings in Bank of America Corporation by 17.3% in Q1, selling 25,843 shares to now own 123,126 shares valued at approximately $5,138,000.
• Multiple institutional investors have adjusted their positions in Bank of America, with Deutsche Bank AG increasing its stake by 45.1% in the same quarter.
• Bank of America announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.28 per share, along with a significant **$40 billion share buyback authorization**, reflecting confidence in its stock valuation.

Ascent Group LLC lowered its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 17.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 123,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,843 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $5,138,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Bank of America by 45.1% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 48,112,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,007,718,000 after purchasing an additional 14,960,086 shares during the last quarter. Theleme Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $263,449,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Bank of America by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 45,092,517 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,981,816,000 after purchasing an additional 5,092,504 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $217,979,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Bank of America by 4,414.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,654,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $194,212,000 after purchasing an additional 4,550,930 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. HSBC cut shares of Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $51.00 in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Phillip Securities cut shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Baird R W cut shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at $10,180,656.99. This trade represents a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Performance

NYSE:BAC opened at $49.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $368.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.34. Bank of America Corporation has a 1-year low of $33.06 and a 1-year high of $50.92. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $47.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

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

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is an increase from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is 32.75%.

Bank of America declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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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