Eastern Bank Grows Stake in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Eastern Bank increased its stake in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,363,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,686 shares during the period. Bank of America accounts for 1.2% of Eastern Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $70,325,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the second quarter worth approximately $5,091,641,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Bank of America by 124.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 17,619,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $833,771,000 after purchasing an additional 9,782,208 shares during the last quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. purchased a new position in Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $202,439,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp boosted its stake in Bank of America by 881.5% during the 2nd quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 4,210,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $199,236,000 after purchasing an additional 3,781,417 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth $164,623,000. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of America Price Performance

BAC stock opened at $54.47 on Wednesday. Bank of America Corporation has a 52-week low of $33.06 and a 52-week high of $57.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market cap of $397.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a fifty day moving average of $54.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.14.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $5.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.05 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 15.70%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Bank of America from $59.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Bank of America from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Bank of America from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on Bank of America from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Bank of America from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.82.

Key Stories Impacting Bank of America

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of America this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights BAC’s history of earnings surprises and argues the bank has the key drivers (trading/markets strength, stable net interest income) to again beat consensus in the upcoming quarter. Why Bank of America (BAC) Could Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest in BAC dropped materially in December (about a 21% decline vs mid‑December), reducing a potential short‑squeeze overhang and signaling fewer bearish positions against the stock. (Internal short‑interest report)
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America research argues AI-driven bond issuance could create a major capital‑markets opportunity (WSJ: “AI bond sales could hit $300B a year”), which would support IB fee revenue if BofA captures market share. AI Bond Sales Could Hit $300 Billion a Year, Bank of America Says
• Positive Sentiment: Media coverage (Jim Cramer commentary) portrays BAC’s valuation as conservative versus fundamentals, supporting a narrative that upside exists if execution continues. Bank of America (BAC)’s Multiple is An Insult to Its CEO, Says Jim Cramer
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and outlets are positioning ahead of BAC’s Q4 print — some small forecast adjustments and preview pieces highlight trading strength and stable NII but await management guidance for 2026. This keeps volatility around the print likely but doesn’t move fundamentals yet. Bank of America Gears Up For Q4 Print; Here Are The Recent Forecast Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry pieces note U.S. banks entered the earnings season on firmer footing after 2025 — a supportive macro backdrop that reduces tail‑risk but still leaves company-specific execution as the main driver. Banks Enter Earnings Season on Firmer Footing, Though Risks Linger
• Negative Sentiment: Political headlines from former President Trump proposing a 10% cap on credit‑card APRs triggered a sectorwide selloff; Reuters reports banks are warning such a cap would shrink credit access and hurt margins — a direct revenue risk for BAC’s consumer card business. Banks warn consumers will be hurt by Trump’s 10% cap on credit card interest rates
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage (Investopedia and others) shows bank stocks tumbling on the regulatory headlines and investor uncertainty, which likely explains much of BAC’s down move today despite company‑specific positives. Big Bank Stocks Tumbled After Trump Said This

About Bank of America

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.