Heritage Investors Management Corp Cuts Stock Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Heritage Investors Management Corp trimmed its Bank of America stake by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 10,479 shares and leaving it with 721,856 shares valued at about $39.7 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with hedge funds and other institutional investors holding about 70.71% of Bank of America’s stock, even as some firms added to or reduced positions.
• Bank of America’s fundamentals and outlook were mixed: the company beat quarterly earnings estimates and raised its dividend, but analysts remain split, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” amid some recent target cuts and a CFRA downgrade to Hold.

Heritage Investors Management Corp reduced its position in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 721,856 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,479 shares during the period. Bank of America makes up approximately 1.2% of Heritage Investors Management Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Heritage Investors Management Corp's holdings in Bank of America were worth $39,702,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,061 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp increased its holdings in Bank of America by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 4,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $273,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Holistic Financial Partners increased its holdings in Bank of America by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Holistic Financial Partners now owns 7,896 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $434,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. increased its holdings in Bank of America by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 19,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,092,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Capital Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Bank of America by 4.2% in the third quarter. Riverview Capital Advisers LLC now owns 4,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America published an outlook highlighting renewed opportunities in commercial real estate, farmland, timberland, and energy, which suggests its research team sees improving fundamentals in real assets and could support fee-generating client activity. Bank of America Outlook Sees Renewed Opportunity Across Commercial Real Estate, Farmland, Timberland and Energy
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America remained active on the research front, reiterating a Buy rating on Alphabet and reinstating coverage on ServiceNow with a Buy call, reinforcing its influence in market-moving stock research and signaling a constructive view on risk assets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America’s disclosure of indirect crypto ETF exposure and research on Gen Z money habits is more informative than market-moving, but it underscores the bank’s participation in digital-asset-linked products and its focus on younger customers.
• Negative Sentiment: CFRA downgraded Bank of America (BAC) to Hold, which can weigh on sentiment by suggesting less upside from current valuation levels. CFRA downgrades Bank of America (BAC) to a Hold
• Negative Sentiment: News that Bank of America will pay a settlement over duplicate 7-Eleven ATM fees may add to concerns about litigation and operating risks, though the financial impact appears limited. Bank of America will pay settlement over duplicate 7-Eleven ATM fees

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Bank of America from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of Bank of America from $70.00 to $61.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Piper Sandler increased 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. Finally, Autonomous Res lowered their price target on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 94,000 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.94, for a total transaction of $4,412,360.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 170,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,988,436.96. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total transaction of $6,719,335.56. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,373,397 shares in the company, valued at $72,803,774.97. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, 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 Up 0.4%

Shares of BAC opened at $51.46 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $365.16 billion, a PE ratio of 12.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company's fifty day moving average is $50.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.38. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $42.35 and a fifty-two week high of $57.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $30.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.72 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 11.49%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. Analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.