Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Given a $53.00 Price Target by Royal Bank Of Canada Analysts

Royal Bank Of Canada set a $53.00 price target on Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) in a research report released on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a report on Friday, June 27th. TD Cowen began coverage on Bank of America in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $53.00 price target for the company. Argus cut their price objective on Bank of America from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Cfra Research upped their target price on Bank of America to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.28.

Bank of America Trading Up 0.5%

Bank of America stock traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $48.94. The stock had a trading volume of 21,620,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 40,113,109. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $44.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.42. Bank of America has a twelve month low of $33.07 and a twelve month high of $49.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.61 billion, a PE ratio of 14.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.30.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $27.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.83 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 14.56%. Analysts expect that Bank of America will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. Bank of America's payout ratio is currently 30.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of America

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Bank of America by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 142,289,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,243,000,000 after buying an additional 2,033,229 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 122,437,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,381,126,000 after acquiring an additional 11,691,451 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,226,989,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 88,210,527 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,876,853,000 after acquiring an additional 17,031,143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Bank of America by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 67,935,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,985,785,000 after purchasing an additional 9,980,859 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% 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.