Hardin Capital Partners LLC Has $6.74 Million Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Hardin Capital Partners LLC increased its stakes in Bank of America Corporation by 39.1%, holding 139,911 shares valued at approximately $6.74 million, making it their second-largest investment.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Bank of America, with a consensus of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.61, reflecting different outlooks on the stock's performance.
• Bank of America has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.28 per share and initiated a $40 billion share buyback program, indicating confidence in its stock valuation.

Hardin Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 39.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 139,911 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 39,294 shares during the period. Bank of America comprises about 4.0% of Hardin Capital Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Hardin Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $6,737,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Nova Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 75.2% in the second quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Vega Investment Solutions bought a new stake in Bank of America during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Bank of America during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America in the first quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Bank of America from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price 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. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Bank of America from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. 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 issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.61.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.2%

Bank of America stock opened at $50.68 on Wednesday. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.06 and a twelve month high of $51.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $48.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $375.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.34.

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

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This is a positive change 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 32.75%.

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

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total value of $6,762,177.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at $10,180,656.99. This trade represents a 39.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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