Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC Makes New $164.62 Million Investment in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC invested approximately $164.62 million in Bank of America by acquiring 3,688,182 shares, indicating strong institutional interest in the financial services provider.
• Bank of America announced a stock repurchase plan of up to $40 billion, reflecting management's view that the stock is undervalued, and recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.28 per share.
• Analysts are optimistic about Bank of America’s stock performance, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.82, following various price target increases from major firms.

Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 3,688,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $164,623,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 60,417,407 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,521,218,000 after acquiring an additional 803,570 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 45.1% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 48,112,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,007,718,000 after acquiring an additional 14,960,086 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 3.7% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 39,233,293 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,637,205,000 after buying an additional 1,413,313 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 0.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 31,956,699 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,333,351,000 after buying an additional 188,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its stake in Bank of America by 2.4% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 12,970,274 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $541,250,000 after purchasing an additional 300,944 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of BAC traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $52.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 98,925,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,208,044. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Bank of America Corporation has a 1 year low of $33.06 and a 1 year high of $52.66. The business has a fifty day moving average of $48.55 and a 200 day moving average of $44.53. The company has a market cap of $387.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.79 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 10.25%. Bank of America's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. As a group, 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.75%.

Bank of America announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BAC. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank of America from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 13th. Hsbc Global Res cut Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Sixteen equities research 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, Bank of America currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.82.

Insider Activity

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

Bank of America Profile

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.