Freestone Grove Partners LP Acquires New Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Freestone Grove Partners acquired 53,738 Bank of America shares worth approximately $2.8 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 70.71% of BAC, with several major funds increasing their positions.
• Bank of America reported quarterly EPS of $1.21, exceeding estimates of $1.13, while revenue rose 19.6% year over year to $31.56 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $64.08.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend from $0.28 to $0.32 per share, implying an annualized dividend of $1.28 and a 2.1% yield. Potential risks include an SEC investigation into margin lending, higher capital requirements and competitive pressure in investment banking.

Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 53,738 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,799,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter worth about $4,774,210,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 57,619,317 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,169,062,000 after acquiring an additional 2,929,779 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 53,783,821 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,958,110,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105,833 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 47,172,503 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,594,488,000 after acquiring an additional 2,611,776 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 640.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 46,516,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,399,798,000 after acquiring an additional 40,235,201 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank of America Stock Up 2.0%

NYSE BAC opened at $62.38 on Friday. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $46.12 and a twelve month high of $65.22. The stock has a market cap of $436.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.31, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $54.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $31.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.78 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.68 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.69%.

Bank of America News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s artificial-intelligence initiatives and branch expansion are expected to improve operating efficiency and customer service. The potential for productivity gains supports the long-term earnings case, although elevated expenses remain a risk. Should You Buy BAC Stock as AI-Led Branch Expansion Boosts Efficiency?
• Positive Sentiment: Strong inflows into gold and cryptocurrency funds reported by BofA suggest elevated client demand for investment products. That activity could benefit the bank’s wealth-management, brokerage and trading businesses, though the impact on BAC’s earnings is indirect.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America disclosed holdings of approximately 4.69% and 5.87% in QIAGEN, reflecting regulatory notifications about its investment position. The disclosures may attract attention but do not materially change BAC’s core banking outlook. Bank of America Discloses 5.87% Stake in QIAGEN
• Neutral Sentiment: BofA strategists warned that global equities could face an autumn “reality check” tied to the U.S. midterm elections and geopolitical developments. A market pullback could weigh on BAC through lower investment-banking, asset-management and trading activity. Bank of America Warns of an Autumn Reality Check
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan is hiring senior technology dealmaker David Fishman from Bank of America. Losing an experienced M&A executive could weaken BAC’s technology investment-banking franchise and adds to competitive pressure. JPMorgan Hiring Bank of America’s David Fishman
• Negative Sentiment: The SEC is reportedly investigating margin lending to hedge fund Situational Awareness after a 67% drawdown, with Bank of America among the subpoenaed banks. Potential legal, credit and reputational risks could pressure sentiment. SEC Probe Puts Wall Street Leverage Risk Back in Focus
• Negative Sentiment: BAC is challenging proposed changes to the Federal Reserve’s global systemically important bank capital surcharge. Higher capital requirements could constrain lending, reduce balance-sheet flexibility and pressure returns on equity. Bank of America Joins Clash Over Fed GSIB Capital Rule

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Bank of America from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.08.

Bank of America Profile

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.

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