Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) Shares Purchased by Ashton Thomas Securities LLC

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC) by 56.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,740 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of America by 402.2% in the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of America during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of America by 839.0% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the last quarter. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of America by 1,489.3% during the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 890 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 834 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on BAC shares. Cfra reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays increased their price target on Bank of America from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com upgraded Bank of America from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bank of America

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 5,183,829 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.31, for a total transaction of $203,776,317.99. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 937,246,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,843,142,343.43. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 92,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.80, for a total transaction of $3,661,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 96,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,824,063.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 5,183,829 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.31, for a total transaction of $203,776,317.99. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 937,246,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,843,142,343.43. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,067,817 shares of company stock valued at $4,548,518,070 in the last three months. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Bank of America Stock Performance

BAC opened at $46.10 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $353.72 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.07. Bank of America Co. has a fifty-two week low of $27.42 and a fifty-two week high of $46.52.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.03. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 12.48%. The firm had revenue of $25.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. Bank of America’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Bank of America Co. will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Bank of America’s payout ratio is 37.82%.

Bank of America announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.