Bank of America Corporation $BAC Stock Holdings Lifted by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel increased its Bank of America stake by 314.9% in the third quarter, holding 283,764 shares valued at approximately $15.4 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 70.71% of BAC.
• Bank of America’s quarterly earnings missed expectations, with EPS of $1.08 versus $1.10 forecast and revenue of $29.96 billion versus $30.58 billion expected. The company nevertheless reported 3.2% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 from $0.28, equivalent to a $1.28 annualized payout and a 2.5% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $64.22.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 314.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 283,764 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 215,365 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Bank of America were worth $15,445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,571,060,000. Amundi raised its position in Bank of America by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 42,385,115 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,066,274,000 after purchasing an additional 4,721,969 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,359,172,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Bank of America in the second quarter worth $2,313,953,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Bank of America by 1.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 31,135,112 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,517,599,000 after purchasing an additional 561,413 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Stock Performance

Shares of Bank of America stock opened at $51.40 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $359.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $59.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.69. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $46.12 and a fifty-two week high of $65.22.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.02). Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%. The company had revenue of $29.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.06 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.60 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Bank of America's payout ratio is 29.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on BAC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Bank of America from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Truist Financial cut their price target on Bank of America from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Bank of America from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Bank of America from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.22.

Key Headlines Impacting Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: Underlying banking trends were solid: net interest income rose 8% year over year to $16.4 billion, average loans increased 6% to $1.23 trillion, and deposits grew 2% to $2.02 trillion. Global wealth and investment management revenue also increased 13%. Bank of America Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America returned $8.3 billion to shareholders during the quarter through $2.2 billion of dividends and $6.0 billion of share repurchases, which may support the stock’s valuation after the selloff. Bank of America Reports $6.9 Billion Third-Quarter Net Income
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Brian Moynihan said the company has accountability for the compliance failures and expects remediation costs to decline over time. BAC also hired roughly 1,000 contractors to address software vulnerabilities identified by Anthropic’s Mythos AI model, adding to near-term expenses but potentially reducing operational risk. Bank of America hired 1,000 contractors to patch software flaws
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. regulators imposed more than $1.2 billion in penalties over anti-money-laundering and sanctions-control failures, including a failure to timely report more than $5 billion in suspicious transactions. The non-tax-deductible charge reduced quarterly earnings by approximately $0.17 per share and raises concerns about ongoing compliance costs. Bank of America profit hurt by $1.2 billion fine
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS was $1.08 versus the $1.10 consensus, while revenue of roughly $30.0 billion missed estimates near $30.6 billion. Reported net income fell 17% year over year to $6.9 billion, and weaker investment-banking and trading revenue, higher expenses, and a $1.3 billion provision for credit losses compounded the disappointment. BAC Q3 Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Several law firms announced shareholder investigations following the regulatory disclosures, creating an additional headline and potential litigation risk, although no claims have been established. Securities Fraud Investigation Into Bank of America

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation NYSE: BAC is a diversified financial services company serving individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its principal businesses include consumer banking, wealth and investment management, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and sales and trading.

Through its banking and financial services businesses, the company offers deposit accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity products, consumer and business loans, payment services, treasury management, brokerage services and investment advice.

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