Unisphere Establishment Lowers Stock Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Key Points

• Unisphere Establishment reduced its Bank of America stake by 15.3% in the first quarter, selling 863,300 shares and leaving it with 4.774 million shares worth about $232.7 million.
• Bank of America recently reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.21 per share and revenue growth of 19.6% year over year, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $63.77.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend by 14% to $0.32 per share, signaling continued confidence in capital generation and shareholder returns.

Unisphere Establishment cut its stake in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 15.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,774,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 863,300 shares during the quarter. Bank of America makes up approximately 2.0% of Unisphere Establishment's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Unisphere Establishment owned about 0.07% of Bank of America worth $232,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 4,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Operose Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 20,409 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,123,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 19,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,092,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. GatePass Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 3.6% in the first quarter. GatePass Capital LLC now owns 5,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 61,597 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,388,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BAC. Autonomous Res cut their price target on Bank of America from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. HSBC upped their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group boosted their target price on Bank of America from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.77.

Trending Headlines about Bank of America

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its quarterly dividend by 14% to $0.32 per share, a clear signal of strong capital generation and management’s commitment to shareholder returns. Bank of America hikes common stock dividend by 14%
• Positive Sentiment: The dividend boost was also highlighted in company announcements and market coverage, likely supporting sentiment that BAC’s balance sheet and earnings power remain solid. Bank of America Increases Common Stock Dividend 14% to 0.32 Per Share
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America also continued to get attention for its investment research, including bullish calls on AI beneficiaries like Micron and Alphabet, which can reinforce the firm’s reputation and market visibility. Why BofA Thinks Micron Stock Could Be One of AI’s Biggest Long-Term Winners
• Neutral Sentiment: One report noted Bank of America’s well-known stock-market “sell signal” indicator is at its highest level since 2021, which may be seen as a cautionary macro signal rather than a direct BAC-specific issue. BofA's famed sell signal for stocks is at its highest level since 2021
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional coverage on federal debt, inflation, and global bond weakness reflects the broader macro backdrop BAC operates in, but these items do not directly change the bank’s near-term fundamentals. Trump Called Himself the ‘King of Debt.’ Now Bank of America Says the U.S. Will Spend $2 Trillion More Than It Brings In This Year

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other news, insider Geoffrey S. Greener sold 126,756 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $72,803,774.97. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Performance

NYSE BAC opened at $62.00 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $439.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83. The business's 50 day moving average price is $56.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.36. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $44.75 and a fifty-two week high of $62.28.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $8.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.78 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.Bank of America's quarterly revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America's payout ratio is currently 25.69%.

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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