Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) Shares Acquired by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its holdings in Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC - Free Report) by 175.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 330,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 210,709 shares during the period. Bank of America accounts for 0.5% of Banque Cantonale Vaudoise's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise's holdings in Bank of America were worth $13,129,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BAC. Summit Global Investments lifted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 237.6% in the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 51,278 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,035,000 after acquiring an additional 36,089 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 43.0% during the third quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC now owns 39,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,567,000 after acquiring an additional 11,873 shares in the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its position in shares of Bank of America by 125.8% in the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 61,002 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,421,000 after purchasing an additional 33,983 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 27.1% in the first quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 98,189 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,734,000 after buying an additional 20,916 shares during the period. Finally, SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of America by 37.7% in the second quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 54,393 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,163,000 after acquiring an additional 14,901 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company's stock.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of Bank of America stock traded down $0.31 on Tuesday, hitting $46.41. 28,506,576 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 38,648,605. The stock has a market capitalization of $356.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Bank of America Co. has a 52 week low of $29.32 and a 52 week high of $47.02. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.44.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.03. Bank of America had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 10.09%. The company had revenue of $25.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $25.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. Bank of America's quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Bank of America Co. will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Bank of America's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.82%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on BAC shares. Phillip Securities raised shares of Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to an "accumulate" rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Bank of America from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Bank of America from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.26.

Insider Activity

In other Bank of America news, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 92,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.80, for a total value of $3,661,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 96,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,824,063.60. This represents a 48.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 6,754,272 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.79, for a total value of $268,752,482.88. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 921,706,667 shares in the company, valued at $36,674,708,279.93. This trade represents a 0.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 102,848,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,145,103,288. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.