Ethic Inc. Buys 81,541 Shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

Ethic Inc. grew its stake in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 121.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 148,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 81,541 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $6,543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 3,883.2% during the 4th quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc now owns 559,995 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 545,936 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Bank of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.6 %

Bank of America stock opened at $41.85 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $39.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.48. 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 Co. has a 52-week low of $33.07 and a 52-week high of $48.08. The firm has a market cap of $315.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.00, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $27.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.83 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.29%. Equities analysts predict that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BAC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Argus reduced their target price on Bank of America from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Phillip Securities raised Bank of America from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Bank of America from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.25.

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.