Market Update (NYSE:BAC): Bank of America $1.27 bln U.S. mortgage penalty is voided

[Reuters] – A U.S. appeals court on Monday threw out a jury’s finding that Bank of America Corp was liable for mortgage fraud leading up to the 2008 financial crisis, voiding a $1.27 billion penalty and dealing the U.S. Department of Justice a major setback. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York found insufficient proof under federal fraud statutes to establish Bank of America’s liability over a mortgage program called “Hustle” run by the former Countrywide Financial Corp. The Justice Department claimed Countrywide, which Bank of America bought in July 2008, defrauded government-sponsored mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by selling them thousands of toxic loans. Read more on this. Bank of America Corporation (BAC) , currently valued at $148.63B, started trading this morning at $14.54. A quick look at the market, the company’s stock traded between $14.40 and $14.60 with the price of the stock fluctuating between $10.99 to $18.48 over the last 52 weeks. BAC shares are currently priced at 11.00x this year’s forecasted earnings, which makes them relatively inexpensive compared to the industry’s 14.60x forward p/e ratio. And for those looking to make a return holding the stock, the company pays shareholders $0.20 per share annually in dividends, yielding 1.38%. In a review of the consensus earnings estimate this quarter, 28 sell-side analysts are looking at $0.37 per share, which would be $0.08 worse than the year-ago quarter and a $0.03 sequential decrease. In looking at the bigger picture, the full-year EPS estimate of $1.32 would be a $0.06 setback when compared to the previous year’s annual results. The quarterly earnings estimate is predicated on a consensus revenue forecast of $20.96 Billion. If reported, that would be a 6.18% decrease over the year-ago quarter. In terms of ratings, Keefe Bruyette downgraded BAC from Outperform to Mkt Perform (May 16, 2016). Previously, Atlantic Equities downgraded BAC from Overweight to Neutral. Given all the information above, we should disclose to readers that the average price target is $17.43, which is 19.88% above than it opened this morning. See more in (NYSE:BAC) Similar Articles: Market Update (NYSE:BAC): Bank of America reaches $190 million mortgage settlement Market Update: Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) – Bank of America Announces Preliminary Voting Results of 2016 Annual Meeting of Stockholders Market Update: Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) – Bank of America Provides NYCEEC with $10 Million Loan for Clean Energy Projects