Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) Major Shareholder Sells $90,533,647.05 in Stock

Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 2,305,415 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.27, for a total transaction of $90,533,647.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 812,041,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,888,881,917.97. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, September 27th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 3,915,126 shares of Bank of America stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.52, for a total transaction of $154,725,779.52.
• On Monday, September 23rd, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 4,941,403 shares of Bank of America stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.94, for a total transaction of $197,359,635.82.
• On Thursday, September 19th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 11,422,560 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.78, for a total transaction of $465,811,996.80.
• On Tuesday, September 17th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 3,966,178 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.58, for a total transaction of $156,981,325.24.
• On Monday, September 9th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 1,721,366 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.57, for a total transaction of $68,114,452.62.
• On Thursday, September 5th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 5,031,014 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.28, for a total transaction of $202,649,243.92.
• On Tuesday, September 3rd, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 8,031,639 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.66, for a total transaction of $326,566,441.74.
• On Friday, August 30th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 7,938,699 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.61, for a total transaction of $322,390,566.39.
• On Wednesday, August 28th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 7,081,075 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.95, for a total transaction of $282,888,946.25.
• On Monday, August 26th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 10,975,008 shares of Bank of America stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.87, for a total transaction of $437,573,568.96.

Bank of America Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of BAC traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $39.39. The company had a trading volume of 27,848,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 39,325,918. Bank of America Co. has a one year low of $24.96 and a one year high of $44.44. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $39.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.97. The company has a market capitalization of $308.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.04. Bank of America had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The business had revenue of $25.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bank of America Co. will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This is a positive change from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on BAC shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Cfra reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Bank of America from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of America presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.22.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of America

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $2,175,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 4th quarter valued at $3,601,000. American National Bank & Trust Co. VA acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the first quarter worth $1,322,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 27.1% during the first quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 98,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,734,000 after purchasing an additional 20,916 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 19.4% during the first quarter. Foster Group Inc. now owns 8,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America Company Profile

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.