Ascent Group LLC Acquires 18,486 Shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 14.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 148,969 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 18,486 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $6,547,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 3,883.2% during the fourth quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc now owns 559,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 545,936 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Vega Investment Solutions bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE BAC traded up $1.00 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $44.20. 36,298,959 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 39,781,357. The business's 50-day moving average is $40.36 and its 200-day moving average is $43.58. Bank of America Co. has a twelve month low of $33.07 and a twelve month high of $48.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $332.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.10. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 14.10%. The firm had revenue of $27.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.83 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BAC shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Bank of America from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Bank of America from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Bank of America from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.50.

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.