Geode Capital Management LLC Has $8.47 Billion Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management trimmed its Bank of America stake by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, but still holds a massive position of 154.5 million shares valued at about $8.47 billion. Bank of America remains Geode’s 23rd-largest holding.
• Bank of America’s latest earnings topped expectations, reporting $1.11 EPS versus the $1.00 consensus and revenue of $30.27 billion, up 10.7% year over year. Analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $61.06.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, payable June 26, which works out to a 2.2% annualized yield. Insider selling has continued, with executives selling shares in recent months.

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 154,483,485 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 252,398 shares during the period. Bank of America accounts for 0.5% of Geode Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.12% of Bank of America worth $8,468,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 182.3% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 511 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 566.0% in the fourth quarter. HFM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 626 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s analysts continued to highlight attractive opportunities in other companies, including upgraded calls on names like Intuit, Walmart, Spotify, Nvidia, and Oklo, underscoring the firm’s active and influential research platform. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America said Brazil could see a surge of IPOs after a long drought, which points to a possible rebound in investment-banking activity and future fee opportunities. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America cleared a derivatives hurdle in its regulatory “living will,” removing an overhang and signaling continued progress on capital-planning and risk-management requirements. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway reportedly has not sold its Bank of America stake, which some investors may view as a confidence signal for BAC’s long-term value. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America’s presentation at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference kept BAC in focus, but the transcript itself did not provide a clear new stock-moving catalyst. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also drew attention from conference-related announcements and charitable news, including Boston Marathon fundraising tied to Bank of America sponsorship, which is positive for brand visibility but not a major earnings driver. Article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BAC. Autonomous Res dropped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bank of America has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.06.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other Bank of America news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total transaction of $6,719,335.56. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,373,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $72,803,774.97. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Thomas M. Scrivener sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total transaction of $2,491,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 227,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,357,614.86. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 354,588 shares of company stock worth $17,814,296. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of BAC opened at $51.21 on Thursday. Bank of America Corporation has a one year low of $43.36 and a one year high of $57.55. The company has a market cap of $363.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.34.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.11. Bank of America had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 11.49%. The business had revenue of $30.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.90 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Bank of America's payout ratio is presently 27.72%.

Bank of America Company 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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