Bank of America Corporation $BAC is Azora Capital LP's 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• Azora Capital LP increased its stake in Bank of America Corporation by 958.9%, making it the second largest position in their portfolio, now accounting for 9.5% of total holdings.
• Bank of America announced a $40 billion stock buyback plan and increased its quarterly dividend from $0.26 to $0.28, reflecting the board's confidence in the company's value.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Bank of America, with a price target averaging around $50.13.

Azora Capital LP increased its position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 958.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,344,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,028,530 shares during the quarter. Bank of America accounts for 9.5% of Azora Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Azora Capital LP's holdings in Bank of America were worth $139,560,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BAC. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in 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 position in Bank of America by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 20,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $906,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC raised its position in Bank of America by 1.4% during the first quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 17,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $723,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc raised its position in Bank of America by 1.8% during the first 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 raised its position in Bank of America by 1.4% during the first quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 18,053 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $832,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total value of $6,762,177.87. Following the sale, the insider owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. The trade was a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Bank of America stock opened at $50.51 on Friday. Bank of America Corporation has a 1 year low of $33.06 and a 1 year high of $50.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $47.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.94. The company has a market cap of $374.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.77, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.31.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Baird R W lowered shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.13.

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.

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