UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its position in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,788,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 440,474 shares during the quarter. Bank of America comprises 1.8% of UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $254,411,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BAC. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Bank of America by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,940,121 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $173,168,000 after purchasing an additional 173,021 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth $60,679,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Bank of America by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 2,028,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,150,000 after buying an additional 10,377 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its stake in shares of Bank of America by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 3,458,616 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $152,006,000 after acquiring an additional 38,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank of America by 0.7% during 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 last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Price Performance

Bank of America stock opened at $42.81 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.86. The stock has a market cap of $325.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.32. Bank of America Co. has a 12-month low of $34.15 and a 12-month high of $48.08.

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 expect that Bank of America Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Bank of America’s payout ratio is 32.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on BAC shares. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Bank of America from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Bank of America from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Bank of America from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $48.45.

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.