Covea Finance Has $32.04 Million Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Covea Finance increased its holdings in Bank of America by 43.5% during the 2nd quarter, owning 677,100 shares valued at approximately $32.04 million.
• Bank of America has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.28 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.2%, effective September 26th.
• The company is initiating a $40 billion share buyback plan, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued, while institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the stock.

Covea Finance increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 43.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 677,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 205,400 shares during the quarter. Bank of America accounts for approximately 1.2% of Covea Finance's holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Covea Finance's holdings in Bank of America were worth $32,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BAC. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 430.3% in the 2nd quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 29,558 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 23,984 shares during the period. RTD Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Revisor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at about $301,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 20,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the period. Finally, Hofer & Associates. Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BAC opened at $52.03 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $48.65 and a 200-day moving average of $44.63. The company has a market capitalization of $385.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. Bank of America Corporation has a 52-week low of $33.06 and a 52-week high of $52.66.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.03. The business had revenue of ($22,273.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.79 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 14.81%.Bank of America's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

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

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on BAC shares. HSBC cut 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. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

About Bank of America

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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