Silicon Valley Capital Partners Boosts Stake in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Silicon Valley Capital Partners increased its stake in Bank of America by 14.9%, now owning 273,302 shares valued at $11.27 million, making it the 22nd largest position in their portfolio.
• Bank of America announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.26 to $0.28 per share, and will also initiate a $40 billion stock buyback program, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company recently surpassed earnings expectations, reporting an EPS of $0.89 against a consensus estimate of $0.86, while revenue increased by 4.3% year-over-year.

Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 273,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,399 shares during the period. Bank of America accounts for about 1.5% of Silicon Valley Capital Partners' investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Silicon Valley Capital Partners' holdings in Bank of America were worth $11,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the company'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 directly owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. This represents a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BAC traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $50.60. The stock had a trading volume of 27,849,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,238,896. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $48.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.28. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.06 and a twelve month high of $50.96. The firm has a market cap of $374.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.80, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.34.

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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HSBC lowered Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $51.00 in a report on Monday, July 7th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Bank of America in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on Bank of America from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.39.

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.