Caxton Associates LLP Buys Shares of 2,545,256 Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP has acquired a new stake in Bank of America Corporation, purchasing 2,545,256 shares worth approximately $106 million, making it the fund's 5th largest position.
• Bank of America announced a stock buyback program allowing for the repurchase of $40 billion in shares, signifying management's belief that its stock is undervalued.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.26 to $0.28 per share, yielding 2.3%, and plans to pay this on September 26th.

Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,545,256 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $106,214,000. Bank of America accounts for about 3.7% of Caxton Associates LLP's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 16,707 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $734,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.9% during the first quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 12,567 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 20,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $906,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.4% during the first quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 17,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Financial Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.8% during the first quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 14,383 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $600,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

NYSE BAC traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $50.17. The stock had a trading volume of 31,674,616 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,887,172. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.06 and a twelve month high of $50.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50 day moving average is $48.03 and its 200 day moving average is $44.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $371.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.34.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.83 EPS. Bank of America's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

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

Bank of America declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase 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 purchase up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BAC. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Baird R W cut Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. HSBC lowered Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $51.00 in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.39.

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. This represents a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America 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.