Cooke & Bieler LP Sells 691,115 Shares of Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Cooke & Bieler LP cut its Bank of America stake by 37.6%, selling 691,115 shares during the third quarter and retaining 1.15 million shares valued at approximately $62.5 million.
• Bank of America’s latest quarterly results slightly missed expectations, with EPS of $1.08 versus $1.10 expected and revenue of $29.96 billion versus $30.58 billion forecast. Despite the miss, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $62.82.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 per share, equivalent to a $1.28 annualized payout and a 2.5% yield, while investors also face potential reputational and litigation risks tied to alleged anti-money-laundering compliance issues.

Cooke & Bieler LP lowered its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 37.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,148,262 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 691,115 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP's holdings in Bank of America were worth $62,500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Bank of America by 3.6% during the second quarter. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,889 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 0.5% during the second quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC now owns 35,087 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,999,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. grew its position in Bank of America by 4.0% in the second quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 4,741 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. grew its position in Bank of America by 1.1% in the second quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 16,456 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $938,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GatePass Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 3.6% in the first quarter. GatePass Capital LLC now owns 5,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bank of America News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America declared a quarterly common-stock dividend of $0.32 per share, payable December 24 to shareholders of record on December 4. The continued payout supports the investment case for income-oriented shareholders. Bank of America Declares Fourth Quarter 2026 Stock Dividends
• Positive Sentiment: The bank appointed Jim Fitterling and Bill Thomas to its board, expanding the board from 12 to 14 directors. The additions may strengthen oversight and bring further industrial and corporate leadership experience. Bank of America Names Jim Fitterling and Bill Thomas to Board of Directors
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America’s wealth-management franchise remains a diversification benefit: Global Wealth and Investment Management generated approximately $1.41 billion in second-quarter net income, or about 16% of company earnings. Bank of America Wealth Business
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or promoted securities-fraud investigations and class actions tied to alleged disclosures surrounding Bank of America’s anti-money-laundering compliance issues and a reported $1.2 billion Treasury penalty. The repeated announcements increase reputational and potential litigation risk, although the allegations have not been proven. Lead-plaintiff motions are due December 15, 2026. ROSEN Bank of America Securities Class Action
• Negative Sentiment: The latest reported quarter also fell slightly short of expectations, with earnings of $1.08 per share versus a $1.10 consensus and revenue of $29.96 billion versus $30.58 billion. That performance may limit near-term enthusiasm despite year-over-year revenue growth.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Bank of America from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Evercore set a $62.00 price objective on Bank of America in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Citigroup decreased their target price on Bank of America from $66.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Bank of America from $69.00 to $64.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Monday. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.82.

Bank of America Stock Performance

Bank of America stock opened at $50.81 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $58.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.78. The company has a market cap of $355.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $29.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.58 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 12.15%. The firm's revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.06 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.54 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.40%.

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation NYSE: BAC is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides banking, lending, investment, payments and financial management services to consumers, businesses, institutional investors and governments.

The company's consumer banking operations offer checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans and other consumer financial products. Through Merrill, Bank of America provides wealth management, investment advisory, brokerage and retirement services.

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