DRW Securities LLC Sells 81,173 Shares of Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• DRW Securities LLC has reduced its holdings in Bank of America by 40.6%, now owning 118,900 shares worth approximately $4.96 million.
• Bank of America announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.26 to $0.28 per share, and initiated a share buyback plan of $40 billion.
• According to analysts, Bank of America has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $50.13, following several recent rating adjustments.

DRW Securities LLC cut its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 40.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 118,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 81,173 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $4,961,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vega Investment Solutions bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BAC. Cowen began coverage on Bank of America in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. HSBC lowered Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $51.00 in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Bank of America from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $53.00 target price on Bank of America and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.13.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC stock opened at $50.76 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $375.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.31. 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 $50.92. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.95.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) 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%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.83 EPS. Research analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is an increase from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.41%.

Bank of America declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company 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.

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