Avanza Fonder AB Has $21.76 Million Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Avanza Fonder AB reduced its stock holdings in Bank of America by 8.2%, now holding 459,910 shares worth approximately $21.76 million, marking it as the fund's 20th biggest position.
• Bank of America recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, an increase from the previous $0.26, translating to a 2.1% dividend yield.
• Equity analysts have updated their price targets for Bank of America, with Citigroup raising it from $54.00 to $58.00, indicating a positive outlook on the stock's performance.

Avanza Fonder AB decreased its stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 8.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 459,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 41,211 shares during the quarter. Bank of America accounts for about 0.6% of Avanza Fonder AB's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Avanza Fonder AB's holdings in Bank of America were worth $21,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Bank of America by 45.1% in 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 acquiring an additional 14,960,086 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth about $217,979,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Unisphere Establishment raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 1,642.5% during the 1st quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 4,195,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $175,057,000 after purchasing an additional 3,954,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 2nd quarter worth about $164,623,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America Stock Performance

BAC traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $52.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 27,332,974 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,774,715. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.06 and a twelve month high of $52.66. The stock has a market cap of $385.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

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

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Bank of America's payout ratio is 32.75%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan 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 reacquire up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BAC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Phillip Securities cut shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Bank of America from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of Bank of America 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 owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. This trade represents a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America 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.