Morgan Stanley Increases Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Price Target to $67.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has raised its price target for Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) from $66.00 to $67.00, indicating a potential upside of 31.53% from the current stock price.
• Bank of America recently reported an EPS of $1.06 for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.93, and achieved a 10.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The firm has initiated a $40 billion stock repurchase program, reflecting confidence from the Board of Directors in the stock's current valuation.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) had its price target lifted by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $66.00 to $67.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 31.53% from the stock's current price.

BAC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Erste Group Bank raised Bank of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Daiwa Capital Markets upped their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Bank of America from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Bank of America from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bank of America presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.18.

Bank of America Stock Performance

Bank of America stock traded down $1.34 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $50.94. 22,917,869 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 40,624,473. Bank of America has a 1 year low of $33.06 and a 1 year high of $52.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $377.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.33. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $49.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.67.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.13. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 14.81%.The firm had revenue of $28.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Bank of America will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Bank of America

In other news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $6,762,177.87. Following the transaction, the insider owned 223,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,180,656.99. This trade represents a 39.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 0.3% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 148,176,755 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,982,863,000 after acquiring an additional 403,652 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter worth about $5,091,641,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Bank of America by 1.3% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 60,417,407 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,521,218,000 after acquiring an additional 803,570 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 5.2% during the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 51,405,673 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,432,516,000 after acquiring an additional 2,557,943 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised 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 acquiring an additional 14,960,086 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

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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