Hoxton Planning & Management LLC Makes New Investment in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Key Points

• Hoxton Planning & Management LLC purchased 7,026 shares of Bank of America, valued at approximately $293,000, marking a new stake for the firm.
• Bank of America recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.28 per share, with a payout ratio of 30.41% and an annual yield of 2.4%.
• Analysts' ratings on Bank of America vary, with 17 out of 23 analysts assigning a "buy" rating and a consensus target price of $50.13.

Hoxton Planning & Management LLC purchased a new position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,026 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $293,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Bank of America by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 108,872 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,785,000 after acquiring an additional 25,143 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 35.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 860,005 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,797,000 after buying an additional 226,246 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 31,984 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,443,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 283,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,451,000 after purchasing an additional 34,826 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Bank of America by 17.4% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 137,308 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,035,000 after acquiring an additional 20,357 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at $10,180,656.99. The trade was a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BAC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Friday, June 27th. TD Cowen started coverage on Bank of America in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. HSBC downgraded Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $51.00 in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Argus cut their price objective on Bank of America from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.13.

Bank of America Trading Down 3.4%

BAC stock traded down $1.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $45.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 52,302,841 shares, compared to its average volume of 39,411,248. The company has a market cap of $343.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.31. The business's 50 day moving average price is $46.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Bank of America Corporation has a 12 month low of $33.06 and a 12 month high of $49.31.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

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

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.41%.

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.