Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 83,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,192 shares during the quarter. Bank of America comprises about 1.1% of Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $3,687,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of BAC. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 1.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 140,255,970 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,546,871,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700,141 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,226,989,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 59,613,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,620,028,000 after acquiring an additional 2,806,927 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Bank of America by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 46,887,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,060,703,000 after acquiring an additional 1,671,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 42,929,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,886,769,000 after acquiring an additional 297,858 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BAC opened at $41.24 on Monday. Bank of America Co. has a one year low of $34.15 and a one year high of $48.08. The stock has a market cap of $313.50 billion, a PE ratio of 12.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.32. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $44.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $25.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.12 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 14.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on BAC shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Bank of America from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barclays boosted their target price on Bank of America from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on Bank of America from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.45.

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.