Patten Group Inc. cut its position in Bank of America Corporation by 20.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 13,114 shares and leaving it with 50,473 shares worth $2,776,000 at the end of the latest quarter.
The move lands in a market that is still heavy with institutional money. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of Bank of America stock, and several other firms were active in the same period. Legacy Bridge LLC increased its stake by 182.3% in the fourth quarter to 511 shares valued at $28,000 after buying 330 shares. In the third quarter, Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake worth about $27,000, while Steph & Co. boosted its position by 224.3% to 548 shares valued at $28,000. Collier Financial and Marquette Asset Management LLC also bought new stakes worth about $30,000 apiece.
Shares of BAC opened at $53.33 on Tuesday, giving Bank of America a market capitalization of $381.05 billion. The bank reported quarterly earnings per share of $0.98 on Wednesday, January 14th, beating the consensus estimate by $0.02 per share, and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share on Friday, March 27th. The stock’s dividend yield stood at 2.1%.
Analysts have also been adjusting their views. Goldman Sachs raised its price objective on Bank of America from $57.00 to $58.00 and kept a buy rating on Monday, April 6th, while JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its target from $61.50 to $57.50. For investors watching bac stock, the message is straightforward: money is still moving in and out of the name, even as the bank posts earnings, pays a dividend and draws fresh target changes from Wall Street.
