Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Stock Holdings in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in Bank of America by 5.3%, now holding 1,373,219 shares worth approximately $64.98 million.
• Bank of America has announced a share repurchase plan authorizing the buyback of up to $40 billion in outstanding shares, indicating the board believes the stock is undervalued.
• The company is increasing its quarterly dividend to $0.28 per share, representing a 7.7% increase from the previous dividend of $0.26 per share.

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 5.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,373,219 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 69,610 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in Bank of America were worth $64,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in Bank of America by 45.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 14,960,086 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,979,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 4,414.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,654,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $194,212,000 after purchasing an additional 4,550,930 shares in the last quarter. Unisphere Establishment lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1,642.5% in the first quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 4,195,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $175,057,000 after purchasing an additional 3,954,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Bank of America in the first quarter valued at approximately $152,098,000. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bank of America Price Performance

Bank of America stock traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $52.27. The company had a trading volume of 98,925,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,208,044. The company has a market capitalization of $387.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34. Bank of America Corporation has a 12-month low of $33.06 and a 12-month high of $52.66. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $48.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) 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 net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 10.25%. The business's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Bank of America's payout ratio is 32.75%.

Bank of America declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $53.00 target price on Bank of America and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Bank of America from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Bank of America from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, HSBC downgraded Bank of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $51.00 in a report on Monday, July 7th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of Bank of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total value of $6,762,177.87. Following the completion of 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company 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.