Gradient Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Gradient Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $1,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Bank of America in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Bank of America by 152.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Bank of America by 1,306.5% during the fourth quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 1,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,006 shares during the period. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of BAC opened at $46.80 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $359.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.96. Bank of America Co. has a twelve month low of $32.35 and a twelve month high of $48.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.05. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 14.10%. The business had revenue of $25.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Bank of America Co. will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BAC shares. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Bank of America from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Bank of America from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Bank of America from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $48.58.

Bank of America 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.