Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (2024)

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According to Bank of America, it’s still possible for investors to make money in a bear market by investing in dividend ETFs.

Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (1)

By Michelle Smith

Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (2)

Edited by Ellen Cannon

Updated Aug. 10, 2023

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Earlier this year, Business Insider reported on a note that Bank of America sent to investors, giving them recommendations on how to weather the upcoming market storms. According to Business Insider, the memo stressed that shareholders are fed up with companies that don’t pay dividends, especially since those same companies have less corporate debt now than they’ve had all century.

So what does Bank of America recommend investors do to make money in a declining stock market? Invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), specifically ETFs that invest in companies offering high-yield dividends and stock buybacks.

Below, we’ll help you understand how to invest in ETFs and give a few recommendations on funds to invest in during the year’s final quarter.

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What are ETFs?

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In simple terms, exchange-traded funds are bundles of stocks or bonds chosen by financial experts. These funds are then traded on the stock market much like individual stocks are.

Exchange-traded funds are often considered good investments for first-time investors. Since they often include the stock of hundreds of companies, they’re inherently diverse, and they can be less risky than investing in individual stocks. Just as with regular stock, you can start investing in solid ETFs by finding an online brokerage firm that offers ETFs.

In its memo to investors, Bank of America recommended finding ETFs that invest in companies that have a high level of free cash flow, pay high-yield dividends, offer stock buyback options, and have a low level of debt — such as the ETFs listed in the following slides.

Pacer U.S. Cash Cows 100 ETF (CBOE:COWZ)

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The Pacer U.S. Cash Cows 100 ETF sorts through the Russell 1000 to find 100 companies with the best free cash-flow yield. Typically, a company with an increasing free cash-flow yield can afford to pay shareholders higher dividends, and a free cash-flow yield of at least 4% indicates a company is worth considering as an investment.

Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF (NYSEMKT:VYM)

SFIO CRACHO/Adobe Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (6)

The Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF specializes in companies with high dividend yields. With more than 440 stock holdings, the fund is fairly diversified and offers better value to would-be investors. As of October 2022, the Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF paid an annual dividend yield of 2.69%.

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iShares U.S. Dividend and Buyback ETF (CBOE:DIVB)

metamorworks/Adobe Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (7)

The iShares U.S. Dividend and Buyback ETF focuses not only on companies that pay dividends, but also on companies that offer stock buybacks. (Many companies do both.) Dividends and buybacks are two solid ways for investors to make a profit on shares. Whether you hold onto your stock and receive dividends or sell it back to the company for cash, these shares can be a source of passive income.

Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEMKT:SCHD)

Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (8)

The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF invests in companies on the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index, or companies that consistently pay shareholder dividends. In October 2022, the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF had an annual dividend yield of 2.83%, which is even higher than the Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index ETF.

First Trust Value Line Dividend Index Fund (NYSEMKT:FVD)

xartproduction/Adobe Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (9)

Unlike most other dividend ETFs, the First Trust Value Line Dividend Index Fund invests equally in every company on its roster. None of its nearly 200 stocks makes up more than 0.6% of the fund’s total investments. This low-risk approach to dividend yield ensures that all your investment eggs aren’t in one high-yield basket. Even if one of its companies falls apart, the ETF itself may not suffer a huge loss.

Alerian MLP ETF (NYSEMKT:AMLP)

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The Alerian MLP ETF focuses on dividend-paying energy infrastructure companies, like pipeline corporations. It invests in far fewer companies than most ETFs on this list, but its 8% dividend yield is also higher than the annual yield of most ETFs. Plus, the energy sector has seen immense growth during this otherwise volatile year; energy stocks on the S&P 500 grew nearly 40% in 2022. That’s good news for energy-centric ETFs like this one, since they should expect dividends to increase as the energy boom goes on.

Bottom line

Alex from the Rock/Adobe Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (11)

Interested in making extra money by investing in dividend ETFs? Start by opening an online brokerage account. An ETF broker can point you toward ETFs with solid dividend yields, allowing you to capitalize on the $7.1 trillion that Bank of America predicted companies would be shelling out to shareholders this year.

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Here’s How Bank of America Says You Should Invest in This Market (2024)

FAQs

Is Bank of America good to invest in? ›

Is Bank of America stock a Buy, Sell or Hold? Bank of America stock has received a consensus rating of buy. The average rating score is A1 and is based on 50 buy ratings, 23 hold ratings, and 6 sell ratings.

How to invest in Bank of America stock? ›

How to buy BAC stock on Public
  1. Sign up for a brokerage account on Public. It's easy to get started.
  2. Add funds to your Public account. ...
  3. Choose how much you'd like to invest in BAC stock. ...
  4. Manage your investments in one place.

How do you tell if a Bank is a good investment? ›

There are a lot of ratios that try to measure how risky a bank's balance sheet is. But one of the simplest and most effective for investors to use is assets/equity. You can find both of these numbers on a bank's balance sheet. For a bank, a general rule of thumb is to look for a ratio that's at 10 or lower.

When you invest in the stock market what are you actually doing? ›

Investing in stocks means buying a piece of ownership in a company. Stocks offer the potential for higher returns than bonds since investors can get both dividends when the company is profitable and returns when the stock price goes up. They also have a higher risk, as stock prices can be more volatile.

Why should you invest in Bank of America? ›

Bank of America is relatively cheap and is well-positioned to benefit from possible interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in 2024.

Why is Bank of America a good company to invest in? ›

Bank of America Corp's trailing 12-month revenue is $137.9 billion with a 16.9% profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 26.6%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.247 per share for the current fiscal year. Bank of America Corp currently has a 2.6% dividend yield.

Is Bank of America a buy right now? ›

Bank of America's analyst rating consensus is a Moderate Buy. This is based on the ratings of 22 Wall Streets Analysts.

Who owns most of Bank of America stocks? ›

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK. A 0.71%)(BRK. B 0.65%): Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is the largest Bank of America shareholder, with 1.03 billion shares amounting to a 13% stake. As of March 2024, it was the second-largest of Warren Buffett's stock holdings after Apple (AAPL -1.46%), worth almost $37 billion.

Who owns stock in Bank of America? ›

The ownership structure of Bank of America (BAC) stock is a mix of institutional, retail and individual investors. Approximately 36.61% of the company's stock is owned by Institutional Investors, 27.44% is owned by Insiders and 35.95% is owned by Public Companies and Individual Investors.

What is the best bank to invest your money? ›

Best bank stocks by one-year performance
TickerCompanyPerformance (1 Year)
JPMJPMorgan Chase & Co.38.70%
CCitigroup Inc30.30%
KEYKeycorp28.69%
BACBank Of America Corp.26.40%
3 more rows
May 1, 2024

Which bank has a good investment? ›

African bank gives you the highest interest rate in South Africa at 10.50%. The nominal interest rate is calculated at 8.80%, and over a 60-month period, the effective interest is 10.50%. And the best part? Your minimum investment amount is just R500!

Is it safe to invest in banks? ›

Bank stocks can be excellent long-term investment opportunities, but they aren't right for all investors. Bank stocks are near the middle of the risk spectrum. They can be recession-prone and are sensitive to interest rate fluctuations, just to name two major risk factors.

How much money do I need to invest to make $3,000 a month? ›

Imagine you wish to amass $3000 monthly from your investments, amounting to $36,000 annually. If you park your funds in a savings account offering a 2% annual interest rate, you'd need to inject roughly $1.8 million into the account.

How much money should I invest in stocks as a beginner? ›

“Ideally, you'll invest somewhere around 15%–25% of your post-tax income,” says Mark Henry, founder and CEO at Alloy Wealth Management. “If you need to start smaller and work your way up to that goal, that's fine. The important part is that you actually start.”

How much money can you make from stocks in a month? ›

Well, there is no limit to how much you can make from stocks in a month. The money you can make by trading can run into thousands, lakhs, or even higher. A few key things that intraday profits depend on: How much capital are you putting in the markets daily?

What is the best Bank to invest your money? ›

Best bank stocks by one-year performance
TickerCompanyPerformance (1 Year)
JPMJPMorgan Chase & Co.38.70%
CCitigroup Inc30.30%
KEYKeycorp28.69%
BACBank Of America Corp.26.40%
3 more rows
May 1, 2024

Which Bank is best for investing USA? ›

Goldman Sachs

Why is Bank of America stock so low? ›

The bank was supposed to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of higher interest rates last year, but it has underperformed its peers because the lender had piled into low-yielding, long-dated securities during the Covid-19 pandemic. Those securities lost value as interest rates climbed.

Why is Bank of America stock falling? ›

Bank of America Earnings Drop, Under Pressure From Higher Rates; Stock Falls. Bank of America reported a 18% drop in first-quarter profit, the latest big lender to feel the squeeze of higher interest rates.

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