UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Sells 39,336,965 Shares of Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• UBS AM significantly reduced its stake in Bank of America by 87.2%, selling 39,336,965 shares and retaining 5,755,552 shares worth approximately $240 million.
• In contrast, Deutsche Bank increased its position by 45.1%, acquiring an additional 14.9 million shares during the same period, bringing its total ownership to 48.1 million shares.
• Bank of America announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.26 to $0.28 per share, representing a 2.2% yield and reflecting its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC reduced its stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 87.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,755,552 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 39,336,965 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned 0.08% of Bank of America worth $240,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 14,960,086 shares in the last quarter. Theleme Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $263,449,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $217,979,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 4,414.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,654,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $194,212,000 after acquiring an additional 4,550,930 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Unisphere Establishment increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 1,642.5% during the first quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 4,195,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $175,057,000 after acquiring an additional 3,954,250 shares in the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 223,407 shares in the company, valued at $10,180,656.99. The trade was a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bank of America Stock Up 1.2%

BAC opened at $50.74 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $375.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.34. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.06 and a twelve month high of $50.96. The company's 50-day moving average price is $48.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.23.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes 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 leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $53.00 target price on shares of Bank of America and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Baird R W cut shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.39.

About Bank of America

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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