Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA Boosts Stake in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA lifted its holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 88.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 371,688 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 173,935 shares during the quarter. Bank of America accounts for about 2.3% of Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA's holdings in Bank of America were worth $15,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BAC. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of Bank of America by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,940,121 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $173,168,000 after purchasing an additional 173,021 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter worth approximately $60,679,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Bank of America by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 2,028,439 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $89,150,000 after buying an additional 10,377 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC grew its position 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 valued at $29,061,000 after buying an additional 50,296 shares during the period. Finally, Keybank National Association OH grew its position in Bank of America by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 3,458,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $152,006,000 after buying an additional 38,258 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC stock opened at $45.01 on Friday. Bank of America Co. has a one year low of $33.07 and a one year high of $48.08. The company's fifty day moving average price is $40.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $339.01 billion, a PE ratio of 13.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.30.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.10. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The firm had revenue of $27.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.83 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BAC. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Baird R W upgraded shares of Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.50.

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.

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