NFJ Investment Group LLC Reduces Stake in Bank of America Co.

NFJ Investment Group LLC has reduced its investment in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 12.8% during the third quarter, as indicated in its latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. After selling 299,900 shares, the firm now holds 2,041,303 shares of this prominent financial services provider.

Bank of America represents 2.4% of NFJ Investment Group LLC's overall portfolio, making it the firm's fourth largest position. The reported value of NFJ Investment Group's holdings in Bank of America stands at approximately $80,999,000.

Other hedge funds have also adjusted their stakes in BAC. For instance, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position by 0.6% during the third quarter, owning 37,393 shares valued at $1,484,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares. Similarly, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake by 1.1%, now owning 20,863 shares worth $828,000 after acquiring 231 additional shares.

Moreover, McAdam LLC grew its holdings by 2.1%, now possessing 11,434 shares valued at $455,000 following a purchase of 238 shares. Integrity Financial Corp WA also increased its position by 1.6%, owning 14,875 shares worth $590,000 after acquiring 240 more shares. Lastly, BTC Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake by 1.2%, now holding 20,248 shares valued at $805,000 after an increase of 248 shares.

As a result of these adjustments, institutional investors now own approximately 70.71% of Bank of America's stock.

Bank of America Stock Overview

On the trading day Tuesday, NYSE:BAC dipped by $0.03, reaching a value of $47.01. The trading volume for the day was 8,224,389 shares, significantly lower than its average of 38,328,012 shares. Over the past twelve months, Bank of America has experienced a low of $30.33 and a high of $48.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.80, and a current ratio of 0.80.

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.02, with a market capitalization of $360.70 billion. The price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is 17.10, while the price-to-earnings-growth (PEG) ratio is 1.61. Additionally, the stock has a beta of 1.33.

Quarterly Earnings Report

Bank of America recently announced its quarterly earnings on October 15th, reporting an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.81, which exceeded the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.03. The company achieved a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 10.09%, with revenues totaling $25.30 billion, slightly higher than the consensus estimate of $25.25 billion. In the same quarter last year, the EPS was $0.90, indicating a year-over-year revenue growth of 0.4%. Analysts predict that Bank of America will report an EPS of 3.27 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement

Additionally, Bank of America has announced a quarterly dividend payout scheduled for December 27th. Shareholders on record as of December 6th will receive a dividend of $0.26 per share, amounting to an annualized total of $1.04, which translates to a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is also set for December 6th, and the company’s current payout ratio is 37.82%.

Analysts Provide Insights

Several analysts have weighed in on Bank of America’s performance. Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock from a “hold” to “buy,” setting a target price of $45.00 in a report dated September 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target from $44.00 to $50.00 while giving the stock a “neutral” rating. Phillip Securities upgraded Bank of America from “neutral” to “accumulate” with a target price of $44.00 as of October 18th. Lastly, Oppenheimer reported an increased price target from $50.00 to $56.00, maintaining an “outperform” rating.

Overall, one analyst has issued a sell rating, eight have a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating, and one has provided a strong buy rating for Bank of America’s stock, leading to an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.57 according to MarketBeat.com.

Insider Transactions

In other developments, a significant shareholder, Berkshire Hathaway Inc, sold 1,721,366 shares on September 9th at an average price of $39.57, totaling approximately $68.11 million. After this transaction, Berkshire Hathaway retains ownership of 861,175,131 shares of Bank of America, valued at around $34.08 billion. This sale represented a marginal decrease of 0.20% in their holdings. Insider selling has amounted to 61,976,277 shares worth over $2.5 billion in the past ninety days, with insiders holding just 0.29% of the company's stock.

Company Overview

Bank of America Corporation, through its subsidiaries, offers a wide array of banking and financial services to individual consumers, small and mid-sized businesses, institutional investors, large corporations, and governments globally. The firm operates through four main segments: Consumer Banking, Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM), Global Banking, and Global Markets.

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