UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Purchases 169,270 Shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Key Points

• UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp significantly increased its stake in Bank of America by 1,317.7%, owning 182,116 shares worth approximately $7.6 million after acquiring 169,270 new shares in Q1.
• Bank of America's stock has experienced analyst downgrades, with Piper Sandler reducing its price target from $45 to $42 and other firms adjusting their ratings from "strong-buy" to "hold".
• Bank of America announced a $40 billion stock buyback plan and increased its quarterly dividend to $0.28 per share, highlighting confidence in its stock value and commitment to shareholder returns.

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp boosted its position in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 1,317.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 182,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 169,270 shares during the period. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp's holdings in Bank of America were worth $7,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 30.0% during 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 last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its holdings in Bank of America by 35.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 860,005 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,797,000 after buying an additional 226,246 shares during the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 31,984 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 283,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,451,000 after purchasing an additional 34,826 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 17.4% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 137,308 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,035,000 after purchasing an additional 20,357 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of NYSE:BAC traded down $1.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.65. 52,302,841 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 39,411,248. The stock has a market cap of $343.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.31. Bank of America Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $33.06 and a fifty-two week high of $49.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last posted 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 firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.79 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 14.81%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is a boost from Bank of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Bank of America's payout ratio is presently 30.41%.

Bank of America declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BAC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a report on Friday, June 27th. Phillip Securities cut Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Cfra Research lifted their price objective on Bank of America to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In related news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. The trade was a 39.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Company 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.