Banco Santander S.A. Increases Holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Banco Santander S.A. raised its stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 66.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,444,695 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 578,347 shares during the period. Bank of America makes up 0.7% of Banco Santander S.A.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Bank of America were worth $60,287,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hayek Kallen Investment Management raised its holdings in Bank of America by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Hayek Kallen Investment Management now owns 12,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $528,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 16,707 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $734,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 20,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $906,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc lifted its position in Bank of America by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 14,383 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust boosted its stake in Bank of America by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 18,053 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $832,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Baird R W downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target 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. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.13.

Bank of America Price Performance

NYSE BAC opened at $45.65 on Friday. 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 12 month low of $33.06 and a 12 month high of $49.31. The stock has a market cap of $343.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.31. The company's 50 day moving average is $46.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.81.

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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for 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 was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. 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. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.41%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. This trade represents a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Bank of America

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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