Banco BTG Pactual S.A. Has $2.43 Million Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Banco BTG Pactual S.A. raised its stake in Bank of America by 45.4%, securing 58,249 shares worth approximately $2.43 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several analysts have increased their price targets for Bank of America, with ratings ranging from "buy" to "overweight," reflecting a generally positive outlook on the stock.
• Bank of America recently announced a dividend increase to $0.28 per share, with a total stock repurchase plan of $40 billion, demonstrating confidence in its valuation.

Banco BTG Pactual S.A. raised its stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 45.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 58,249 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,176 shares during the quarter. Banco BTG Pactual S.A.'s holdings in Bank of America were worth $2,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 121.0% in the first quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 62,041 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,589,000 after acquiring an additional 33,963 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 7.8% in the first quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 696,416 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,061,000 after acquiring an additional 50,296 shares during the last quarter. Prosperity Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Bank of America in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $998,000. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 37.2% in the 1st quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 65,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,714,000 after buying an additional 17,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 170.5% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 238,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,951,000 after buying an additional 150,299 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BAC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Bank of America in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $52.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.13.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

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

Bank of America Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:BAC traded down $0.1150 on Thursday, reaching $48.2350. 28,706,786 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 32,895,712. The firm has a market capitalization of $357.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.31. The company's 50 day moving average is $46.95 and its 200-day moving average is $43.84. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $33.06 and a 1-year high of $49.31.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 business had revenue of ($22,273.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.79 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 10.25%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Bank of America's payout ratio is 30.41%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership 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.