Trillium Asset Management LLC Acquires 127,050 Shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Key Points

• Trillium Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Bank of America by 16.4%, acquiring an additional 127,050 shares in the first quarter, now totaling 899,709 shares valued at $37.5 million.
• Bank of America recently declared a quarterly dividend rise to $0.28 per share and authorized a stock buyback program of $40 billion, indicating confidence in its stock valuation.
• The consensus rating for Bank of America is currently a "Moderate Buy," with 17 analysts providing buy ratings and an average target price of $50.13.

Trillium Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 16.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 899,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 127,050 shares during the quarter. Bank of America comprises 1.1% of Trillium Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Trillium Asset Management LLC's holdings in Bank of America were worth $37,545,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of BAC. Vega Investment Solutions bought a new stake in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Bank of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BAC. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Bank of America from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Friday, June 27th. 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. Barclays decreased their price target on Bank of America from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Bank of America in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total value of $6,762,177.87. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,180,656.99. This represents a 39.91% 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. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC opened at $46.15 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $341.85 billion, a PE ratio of 13.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.31. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $46.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.74. Bank of America Corporation has a 52-week low of $33.06 and a 52-week high of $49.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 prior year, the firm earned $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 Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. 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 yield of 2.4%. Bank of America's payout ratio is currently 30.41%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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