Plato Investment Management Ltd Acquires 9,901 Shares of Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Plato Investment Management increased its Bank of America stake by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, buying 9,901 shares and bringing its total holding to 187,505 shares worth about $10.4 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains broadly positive, with several analysts raising price targets and a consensus rating of Moderate Buy; the average target price is about $61.06, above the stock’s recent price.
• Bank of America reported solid quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share to be paid on June 26.

Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 187,505 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 9,901 shares during the period. Bank of America comprises approximately 0.7% of Plato Investment Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Plato Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Bank of America were worth $10,363,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,061 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Holistic Financial Partners raised its stake 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 worth $434,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Capital Advisers LLC raised its stake 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 worth $242,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 0.3% in the third quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 60,279 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,110,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 1.4% during the third quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. now owns 14,020 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target on Bank of America to $63 from $62, reinforcing a constructive Wall Street view and suggesting further upside from current levels. UBS Raises PT
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expanded its defense financing role and is helping support drone and robotics production, which could translate into more lending, fee income, and long-term client relationships. Defense Financing
• Positive Sentiment: The bank acted as lead lender on a $1.8 billion refinance of 9 West 57th Street, highlighting continued strength in commercial real estate financing activity. 9 West 57th Refinance
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America shareholders backed the current leadership and governance structure at the annual meeting, reducing governance uncertainty but not likely driving a major near-term stock reaction. Shareholder Vote
• Neutral Sentiment: Reuters reported the hiring of tech dealmaker Richard Hardegree as vice chair of M&A, a sign of continued investment banking leadership buildup, though the stock impact is likely limited for now. M&A Hiring
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America’s commentary on card spending pointed to a sudden slowdown in U.S. consumer activity, but the bank said it is not yet sure of the cause. Spending Slump
• Negative Sentiment: High-profile insider selling by Geoffrey Greener, who sold about $6.7 million of BAC shares, is weighing on sentiment and can signal caution to investors. Insider Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Berkshire-related holder Greg Abel continued trimming BAC for a seventh straight quarter add to concerns about reduced conviction from a major long-term investor. Greg Abel Sells

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BAC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore raised their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Bank of America from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Bank of America from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on Bank of America from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of America has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.06.

Bank of America Stock Performance

Shares of BAC stock opened at $51.26 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $363.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $50.44 and a 200 day moving average of $52.51. Bank of America Corporation has a 1 year low of $41.69 and a 1 year high of $57.55.

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

Bank of America Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bank of America news, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 94,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.94, for a total transaction of $4,412,360.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 170,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,988,436.96. This trade represents a 35.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Thomas M. Scrivener sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.82, for a total value of $2,491,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 227,973 shares in the company, valued at $11,357,614.86. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 354,588 shares of company stock valued at $17,814,296 over the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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