Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Stock Falls 1.7% – Should You Sell?

Posted by Francis Steltz on Oct 21st, 2026

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC – Get Free Report) traded down 1.7% on Monday. The company traded as low as $50.20 and last traded at $50.3750. 42,364,122 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 12% from the average session volume of 37,799,344 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.23.

Trending Headlines about Bank of America

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

Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s lending franchise continues to expand: second-quarter average loans rose 8% year over year while deposits increased 2%. Net interest income grew 9%, suggesting that loan growth and funding economics remain supportive despite slower deposit growth. Bank of America deposit franchise article
Positive Sentiment: Some analysts view the stock as de-risked after the recent selloff, arguing that the expected $1.2 billion anti-money-laundering penalty and recent fee weakness may already be reflected in the valuation. Bank of America also received a Buy upgrade from JLPascual. Bank of America valuation article
Positive Sentiment: A proposed overhaul of a federal drug-discount program could increase borrowing needs among hospitals, potentially benefiting banks that provide hospital credit lines, including Bank of America. The opportunity is speculative and depends on policy implementation. Federal drug program article
Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America launched another investment-grade bond offering after an $8 billion capital raise, indicating continued access to funding markets but also adding to investor focus on capital costs and leverage. Bank of America bond sale article
Neutral Sentiment: The bank disclosed or reported increased stakes in several companies, including Qiagen, ICU Girişim Sermayesi and Link Bilgisayar. These appear to be investment or regulatory ownership disclosures rather than material changes to BAC’s core earnings outlook. Qiagen stake article
Negative Sentiment: Bank of America’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with earnings of $1.08 per share versus a $1.10 consensus estimate and revenue of $29.96 billion versus $30.58 billion expected. The modest shortfall has reinforced concerns about fee income and operating momentum.
Negative Sentiment: The reported $1.2 billion Treasury penalty tied to anti-money-laundering and sanctions-compliance violations has prompted multiple securities-fraud investigations and class-action notices. Although the law-firm announcements do not establish wrongdoing, they increase headline, litigation and reputational risk for BAC. Bank of America AML penalty investor alert
Negative Sentiment: Bank shares broadly remain under pressure as Treasury yields rise and investors reassess rate-sensitive financial stocks, adding sector-wide selling pressure to BAC’s company-specific issues. Bank stock sector selloff article

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BAC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Bank of America from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Bank of America from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $72.00 price objective on Bank of America in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Bank of America from $66.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Bank of America from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.82.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on BAC

Bank of America Stock Up 0.4%

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $58.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $353.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.02, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.21.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $29.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.58 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.15% and a net margin of 16.80%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.40%.

Institutional Trading of Bank of America

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new position in Bank of America in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of America by 167.6% during the second quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its position in Bank of America by 69.9% during the second quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 199.1% during the first quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 438 shares during the period. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides banking, lending, investment, payments and financial management services to consumers, businesses, institutional investors and governments.

The company’s consumer banking operations offer checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans and other consumer financial products. Through Merrill, Bank of America provides wealth management, investment advisory, brokerage and retirement services.