Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC Invests $2.19 Million in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 38,468 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,192,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BAC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Bank of America from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Bank of America from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Bank of America from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.08.

Key Headlines Impacting Bank of America

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of America this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s analysts continue to favor value stocks, arguing they are well positioned in an environment of higher interest rates and inflation. This supports the broader investment case for BAC, which trades at a relatively moderate earnings multiple and could benefit from durable net interest income. Stick with value stocks until everyone is talking about them
• Positive Sentiment: BofA Global Research says Federal Reserve corporate-credit facilities remain available to limit downside risks in a debt-heavy artificial-intelligence investment cycle. A continued backstop could reduce systemic credit concerns that might otherwise pressure large banks. The debt-fueled AI build-out may already be too big to fail
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategist Michael Hartnett remains bullish on gold, citing concerns about U.S. government debt and currency debasement. The view may support trading and advisory activity at BAC, although it is not a direct change to the bank’s earnings outlook. Why Bank of America strategist Michael Hartnett says the trade is still long gold
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America disclosed several changes to indirect equity holdings through Merrill Lynch, including a stake above 10% in Lakefront Biotherapeutics and a reduced position in Hidropar. These appear to be portfolio or client-related transactions rather than a material strategic investment in BAC’s own business. Bank of America builds 10% stake in Lakefront Biotherapeutics
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America reportedly spends at least $250 million annually on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs for employees. Management views the benefit as an investment in worker health, but the significant recurring expense could weigh on operating costs if it does not produce measurable savings in health-care claims or employee retention. Bank of America is spending $250 million a year on weight loss drugs for employees

Bank of America Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Bank of America stock opened at $62.50 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.78. The stock has a market cap of $437.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.17. Bank of America Corporation has a 12-month low of $46.12 and a 12-month high of $65.22.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. Bank of America had a net margin of 17.56% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The company had revenue of $31.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. Bank of America’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.69%.

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.