Bank of America Corporation $BAC Shares Bought by Legal & General Group Plc

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its Bank of America stake by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, buying 1.49 million additional shares and bringing its holding to 45.4 million shares worth about $2.5 billion.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive, with 22 Buy ratings and five Hold ratings and a consensus price target of $61.06. Several analysts adjusted targets recently, though some trimmed expectations.
• Bank of America beat its latest quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $1.11 EPS versus $1.00 expected and revenue of $30.27 billion, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share for a 2.2% annualized yield.

Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 45,411,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,487,809 shares during the quarter. Bank of America accounts for about 0.6% of Legal & General Group Plc's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.62% of Bank of America worth $2,497,655,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 651,076,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,809,225,000 after acquiring an additional 23,351,183 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 11.0% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 144,371,118 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,448,816,000 after acquiring an additional 14,275,810 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 2.5% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 52,677,988 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,717,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272,315 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 640.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 46,516,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,399,798,000 after acquiring an additional 40,235,201 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 2.1% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 30,648,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,581,350,000 after acquiring an additional 640,462 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on BAC. Daiwa Securities Group raised their target price on Bank of America from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Evercore reduced their target price on Bank of America from $70.00 to $61.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 15th. Autonomous Res reduced their target price on Bank of America from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Bank of America from $61.50 to $57.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Bank of America from $62.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of America presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.06.

Key Stories Impacting Bank of America

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of America this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America hired veteran banker Richard Hardegree as Vice Chair of Mergers and Acquisitions, a move that could strengthen its dealmaking franchise and support future investment-banking revenue. Bank of America Corporation (BAC) Hires Richard Hardegree as Vice Chair of Mergers and Acquisitions
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted BAC’s loan growth, rising investment-banking fees, and AI-driven branch strategy as long-term positives that may help the stock recover despite this year’s pullback. BAC Slips 6.5% So Far This Year: Should You Still Buy the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America strategist Michael Hartnett warned that mega-IPOs like SpaceX and OpenAI could create tech-market concentration risk, which is important for investors but does not directly change BAC’s fundamentals. BofA’s Hartnett Warns Mega-IPOs Risk Bubble Like Roaring ‘20s
• Neutral Sentiment: BofA also reinstated coverage of nuclear names with a Buy on Oklo and Neutral on NuScale, showing continued activity from the bank’s research team rather than a direct catalyst for BAC shares. BofA reinstates nuclear coverage with Buy on Oklo and Neutral on NuScale
• Negative Sentiment: CFRA downgraded Bank of America to Hold, adding a modest headwind as investors weigh valuation and near-term upside after the stock’s weaker year-to-date performance. CFRA downgrades Bank of America (BAC) to a Hold

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Thomas M. Scrivener sold 50,000 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total transaction of $2,491,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 227,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,357,614.86. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total value of $6,719,335.56. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,373,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $72,803,774.97. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 354,588 shares of company stock worth $17,814,296. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Bank of America Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of BAC stock opened at $51.81 on Monday. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $42.35 and a fifty-two week high of $57.55. The stock has a market cap of $367.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.11. Bank of America had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 16.78%.The business had revenue of $30.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.72%.

About Bank of America

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.

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