Royal Bank Of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Stock

Key Points

• The Royal Bank of Canada has raised its target price for Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) stock from $53.00 to $56.00, indicating a potential upside of 9.20%.
• Bank of America has received mixed ratings from analysts, with 17 analysts rating it as a Buy and five as Hold, resulting in a consensus target price of $52.78.
• The company recently announced a $40 billion share buyback plan, which typically signals that the board believes the stock is undervalued.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) had its target price raised by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada from $53.00 to $56.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has an "outperform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Royal Bank Of Canada's price target points to a potential upside of 9.20% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on BAC. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Bank of America from $50.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Bank of America from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Bank of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $52.78.

Bank of America Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE BAC opened at $51.28 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $49.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.09. 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 $379.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.03. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 10.25%. The firm had revenue of ($22,273.00) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Bank of America will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America declared that its board has approved 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 reacquire up to 11.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In other Bank of America news, insider James P. Demare sold 148,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BAC. Rydar Equities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth approximately $418,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,465 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $684,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth $207,000. Milestones Private Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of America in the second quarter valued at $233,000. Finally, American Trust lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 64.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Trust now owns 7,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $376,000 after buying an additional 3,099 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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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