Stephens Inc. AR Decreases Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Stephens Inc. AR reduced its Bank of America stake by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 29,094 shares and leaving it with 477,583 shares valued at about $26.3 million.
• Bank of America reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.11 beating estimates and revenue of $30.27 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 10.7% year over year.
• The bank also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, equal to $1.12 annually and a 2.3% yield, while analysts maintained a generally positive outlook with an average Moderate Buy rating and $61.06 price target.

Stephens Inc. AR trimmed its position in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 477,583 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 29,094 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR's holdings in Bank of America were worth $26,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased 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 buying an additional 25,143 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 40.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 21,401 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,013,000 after buying an additional 6,174 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 38.4% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 65,677 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,108,000 after buying an additional 18,227 shares during the period. Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America in the second quarter worth $1,396,000. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 4.2% in the second quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 8,819 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $417,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC opened at $49.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Bank of America Corporation has a 52-week low of $42.35 and a 52-week high of $57.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $353.18 billion, a PE ratio of 12.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $50.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.44.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.11. Bank of America had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 16.78%.The firm had revenue of $30.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.46 EPS 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 $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.72%.

Key Headlines Impacting Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America is being highlighted as a potential beneficiary of a “higher-for-longer” or steeper yield-curve environment, which could support lending margins and fixed-rate asset repricing for large banks. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also viewing Bank of America as one of the better-value large banks, with commentary pointing to its relatively attractive valuation and Buffett-backed reputation as reasons it could hold up well versus peers. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are also using Bank of America’s research platform to make calls on other stocks, including Alphabet, Taiwan Semiconductor, ASML, Nvidia, Akamai, IQVIA, and VNET. These notes reinforce BofA’s influence on markets, but they do not directly change BAC’s fundamentals. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Evercore lowered its price target on Bank of America from $70 to $61, which is a modest caution signal even though the firm kept an Outperform rating. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Bank of America

In related news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total value of $6,719,335.56. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,373,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at $72,803,774.97. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Thomas M. Scrivener sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 227,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,357,614.86. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 354,588 shares of company stock valued at $17,814,296 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on BAC shares. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Bank of America from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Bank of America from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their target price on Bank of America from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Bank of America from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. 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.com, Bank of America currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.06.

Bank of America Company 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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