Amalgamated Bank Sells 54,927 Shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Amalgamated Bank reduced its holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,373,282 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54,927 shares during the period. Bank of America accounts for about 0.5% of Amalgamated Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $54,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McAdam LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 2.1% during the second quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 11,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $455,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. BTC Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $805,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in Bank of America by 15.1% during the second quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. SNS Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Bank of America by 3.3% during the second quarter. SNS Financial Group LLC now owns 7,783 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Bank of America by 0.3% in the second quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 94,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,742,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank of America Stock Up 1.2 %

Bank of America stock opened at $39.58 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $309.53 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $40.07 and its 200 day moving average is $38.80. Bank of America Co. has a 12-month low of $24.96 and a 12-month high of $44.44.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.04. Bank of America had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $25.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of America Co. will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This is a boost from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.99%.

Bank of America declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on BAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Cfra restated a “sell” rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Piper Sandler Companies upgraded shares of Bank of America from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $37.00 to $42.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Bank of America from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 12,690,693 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.07, for a total value of $559,278,840.51. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,020,161,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,958,509,063.91. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 12,690,693 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.07, for a total value of $559,278,840.51. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,020,161,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,958,509,063.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lindsay D. Hans sold 10,901 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.91, for a total value of $402,355.91. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $402,577.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 114,391,986 shares of company stock worth $4,719,796,383 over the last quarter. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.