Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Shares Up 1.1% – Time to Buy?

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)’s share price shot up 1.1% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $51.78 and last traded at $51.54. 43,655,110 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 9% from the average session volume of 40,191,203 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BAC. Phillip Securities raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $56.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Bank of America from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, HSBC raised their price objective on Bank of America from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.77.

Bank of America Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $51.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $376.37 billion, a PE ratio of 14.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.34.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.13. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 15.70%.The firm had revenue of $5.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. Bank of America’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.52%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of America

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAC. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 30.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 108,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,785,000 after buying an additional 25,143 shares during the period. Northern Financial Advisors Inc grew its holdings in Bank of America by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 14,383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. PFG Advisors increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 24,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial & Tax Architects LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 1st quarter worth $343,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.