Bank of America Corporation $BAC Shares Sold by Manning & Napier Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Manning & Napier Advisors LLC trimmed its Bank of America stake by 2.8% in the first quarter, selling 10,709 shares and leaving it with 375,943 shares valued at about $18.3 million.
• Bank of America beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.11 EPS on revenue of $30.27 billion, and analysts now expect about $4.51 EPS for the full year.
• The stock has been supported by positive analyst sentiment and a recently paid quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, for an annualized yield of about 1.9%.

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 375,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,709 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $18,327,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BAC. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in Bank of America by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 4,629,553 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $254,625,000 after buying an additional 1,603,080 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Bank of America by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 45,411,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,497,655,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487,809 shares during the last quarter. Certuity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 523,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,987,000 after acquiring an additional 25,268 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,905,348 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $159,794,000 after acquiring an additional 71,307 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of America by 217.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 327,949 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $18,037,000 after purchasing an additional 224,627 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC traded up $0.42 on Friday, reaching $59.67. The company had a trading volume of 21,908,911 shares, compared to its average volume of 32,415,350. The company has a market capitalization of $423.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.77, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a fifty day moving average of $54.50 and a 200-day moving average of $52.98. Bank of America Corporation has a one year low of $44.75 and a one year high of $60.83.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $30.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.72 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 11.49%. Bank of America's revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Bank of America's payout ratio is presently 27.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on BAC. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Argus lifted their price target on Bank of America from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Bank of America from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Bank of America from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.19.

Bank of America News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s consumer team said its latest report showed spending up 6.3%, the fastest pace in four years, with wage growth broad-based across all income groups. That suggests the U.S. consumer remains resilient, which is supportive for BAC’s lending and fee income outlook. BofA Consumer Chief: Spending Jumps 6.3% With Wage Growth Across “All Income Groups”
• Positive Sentiment: Financial funds saw their biggest inflow since January, according to Bank of America, signaling improved investor appetite for the sector ahead of bank earnings season. That kind of rotation can lift BAC and other large-cap financials. Financial funds steal the spotlight with biggest inflow since January, Bofa says
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market coverage continue to frame Bank of America’s upcoming July 14 earnings report as potentially strong, with expectations for healthy net interest income, fee income, and double-digit EPS growth. Strong results could extend the recent move higher in BAC shares. Bank of America Reports Q2 Earnings Next Week. What Investors Should Expect.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America also continues to generate headlines through its analyst research, including bullish views on names like Meta, Nvidia, Micron, Costco, and homebuilders. These reports help reinforce BAC’s influence on Wall Street, but they are only an indirect driver of BAC stock itself. Meta Stock’s AI Chip Ambitions Are Reaching a ‘Positive Inflection,’ Says Bank of America
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America, N.A. announced redemptions of $2.6 billion of senior notes due in August 2026. The move is routine balance-sheet management and is not likely to materially affect the stock on its own. Bank of America, N.A. Announces Redemptions of $2,000,000,000 5.526% Senior Bank Notes and $600,000,000 Floating Rate Senior Bank Notes, Due August 2026

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bank of America news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,373,397 shares in the company, valued at $72,803,774.97. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bank of America Profile

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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