Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Has $139.57 Million Stock Position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management Co. LP significantly increased its stake in Bank of America, owning 3,344,496 shares after purchasing an additional 1,150,471 shares, representing a growth of 52.4%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.28 per share, set to be paid on September 26, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders.
• Bank of America's stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus target price of $50.13.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 52.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,344,496 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,150,471 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP's holdings in Bank of America were worth $139,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAC. Hayek Kallen Investment Management boosted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Hayek Kallen Investment Management now owns 12,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 1.4% in 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 holdings in Bank of America by 1.2% in 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. Northern Financial Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Bank of America by 1.8% in 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 holdings in Bank of America by 1.4% in 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 institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 Stock Performance

BAC traded down $0.62 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.23. 4,025,217 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 42,694,020. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $33.06 and a fifty-two week high of $49.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $46.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.76. The company has a market capitalization of $335.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.24, a PEG ratio of 1.78 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, analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 2.5%. 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%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Bank of America from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Bank of America in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Bank of America from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.13.

Bank of America Company 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.