BAC-WT - Bank of America Warrants

[Grenville]

BofA Plans to Dissolve Merrill Lynch to Simplify Company

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-16/bofa-plans-to-dissolve-merrill-lynch-to-simplify-company.html

 

Interesting. Here is the info from Merrill's 10Q. At first I thought they would dissolve the name/brand, but it sounds like its more to get out of separate reporting.

 

As part of Bank of America's efforts to streamline its organizational structure and reduce complexity and costs, it has reduced and intends to continue to reduce the number of its subsidiaries, including through intercompany mergers. In connection with these efforts, Bank of America may merge ML & Co. directly into Bank of America Corporation and such a merger may occur as early as the fourth quarter of 2013. Under Delaware law, as a result of such a merger, Bank of America Corporation would assume all of ML & Co.'s obligations, including its outstanding U.S. and non-U.S. debt securities, its obligations with respect to outstanding trust preferred securities and ML & Co. guarantees of outstanding non-U.S. debt securities issued by ML & Co. subsidiaries. Also, as a result of such a merger, ML & Co.'s reporting obligations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 would terminate and ML & Co. would cease to separately file reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). There can be no assurance that such a merger will occur, and if it does, the timing thereof. Any such merger would be subject to applicable regulatory approvals, consents and other conditions of closing.

[wescobrk]

Famous last words and obviously anything can happen with mr market but it looks like either moynihan is stepping up the buybacks or more institutions are buying as the stock seems to stay flat while the market continues to decline.

14 could be the lowest we see until it marches up into the high teens later in the year.

 

[Grenville]

Update

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-16/bofa-plans-to-dissolve-merrill-lynch-to-simplify-company.html

 

 

Merrill Lynch & Co., the 99-year-old firm known for its “thundering herd” of brokers pitching stocks to Main Street, may cease to exist as a legal entity more than four years after being acquired by Bank of America Corp.

While Bank of America will keep the Merrill Lynch brand for its retail brokerage and investment bank, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company plans to dissolve the subsidiary as early as the fourth quarter, according to an Aug. 2 filing. The firm will assume all of Merrill Lynch’s obligations and debt.

[fareastwarriors]

Update

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-16/bofa-plans-to-dissolve-merrill-lynch-to-simplify-company.html

 

 

Merrill Lynch & Co., the 99-year-old firm known for its “thundering herd” of brokers pitching stocks to Main Street, may cease to exist as a legal entity more than four years after being acquired by Bank of America Corp.

While Bank of America will keep the Merrill Lynch brand for its retail brokerage and investment bank, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company plans to dissolve the subsidiary as early as the fourth quarter, according to an Aug. 2 filing. The firm will assume all of Merrill Lynch’s obligations and debt.

 

I like Merrill Lynch much better than Bank of America Securities or whatever it was called before.

[arbcon]

...including its derivative book?  Sounds like this is a clever way to have the derivative book financed by the deposit base. This may free up a lot of capital at the parent(we need to find out) but means that you may not want your deposits to be with them.

[Grenville]

...including its derivative book?  Sounds like this is a clever way to have the derivative book financed by the deposit base. This may free up a lot of capital at the parent(we need to find out) but means that you may not want your deposits to be with them.

 

I think the derivatives book was moved to the bank a while back. You can search the thread or the web.

[ERICOPOLY]

...including its derivative book?  Sounds like this is a clever way to have the derivative book financed by the deposit base. This may free up a lot of capital at the parent(we need to find out) but means that you may not want your deposits to be with them.

 

I think the derivatives book was moved to the bank a while back. You can search the thread or the web.

 

I thought that happened in late 2011 when the stock was circling the drain.  Probably made the counterparties feel better.

[ERICOPOLY]

Here it is from October 2011.

 

HOLY BAILOUT - Federal Reserve Now Backstopping $75 Trillion Of Bank Of America's Derivatives Trades

 

http://dailybail.com/home/holy-bailout-federal-reserve-now-backstopping-75-trillion-of.html

 

[Grenville]

In regards to the derivatives, the derivatives book is huge, but BAC has been slowly bringing down the notional size of the credit derivative book both on a gross and net basis.

[LC]

From the latest quarterly report:

 

Previously, Bank of America stated that by the end of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, was expected to decline to $2.1 billion a quarter and the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans would decline to 400,000. Based on the progress in the first half of 2013, the company now expects that by the fourth quarter of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, will be below $2.0 billion and that the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans will decline below 375,000.

Reduced guidance of legacy costs reduction. Still a substantial improvement, but any comments on whether there will be further guidance reduction?

[nkp007]

From the latest quarterly report:

 

Previously, Bank of America stated that by the end of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, was expected to decline to $2.1 billion a quarter and the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans would decline to 400,000. Based on the progress in the first half of 2013, the company now expects that by the fourth quarter of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, will be below $2.0 billion and that the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans will decline below 375,000.

Reduced guidance of legacy costs reduction. Still a substantial improvement, but any comments on whether there will be further guidance reduction?

 

Read it again. They are beating their previous guidance. 

[Grenville]

Warren Buffett thanks BofA CEO Moynihan for $5.3 billion profit

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100971878

 

Warren Buffett thanked CEO Brian Moynihan for Berkshire Hathaway's $5.3 billion profit on its Bank of America investment when the two men met earlier this month.

 

Buffett and Moynihan had a private dinner together on August 6 at the Happy Hollow Club in Omaha, where Buffett is a member.

According to people briefed on the dinner, Buffett expressed bullishness on the banking sector, especially for institutions like Bank of America that have a strong deposit base.

 

Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America and Warren Buffet, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Buffett also praised Moynihan's turnaround efforts, which have helped lift the stock more than 100 percent since Berkshire invested $5 billion in BofA in August 2011.

[fareastwarriors]

Warren Buffett thanks BofA CEO Moynihan for $5.3 billion profit

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100971878

 

Warren Buffett thanked CEO Brian Moynihan for Berkshire Hathaway's $5.3 billion profit on its Bank of America investment when the two men met earlier this month.

 

Buffett and Moynihan had a private dinner together on August 6 at the Happy Hollow Club in Omaha, where Buffett is a member.

According to people briefed on the dinner, Buffett expressed bullishness on the banking sector, especially for institutions like Bank of America that have a strong deposit base.

 

Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America and Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Buffett also praised Moynihan's turnaround efforts, which have helped lift the stock more than 100 percent since Berkshire invested $5 billion in BofA in August 2011.

 

 

Good enough for Buffett, good enough for me.

[LC]

From the latest quarterly report:

 

Previously, Bank of America stated that by the end of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, was expected to decline to $2.1 billion a quarter and the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans would decline to 400,000. Based on the progress in the first half of 2013, the company now expects that by the fourth quarter of 2013, noninterest expense in LAS, excluding litigation costs, will be below $2.0 billion and that the number of 60+ days delinquent mortgage loans will decline below 375,000.

Reduced guidance of legacy costs reduction. Still a substantial improvement, but any comments on whether there will be further guidance reduction?

 

Read it again. They are beating their previous guidance.

Thanks for the correction, you are right!

[xazp]

He's thanking Moynihan because Moynihan took money out of shareholder pockets and handed it to Buffett.  Of course Buffett is thankful.  Shareholders should be appalled. 

 

 

Warren Buffett thanks BofA CEO Moynihan for $5.3 billion profit

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100971878

 

Warren Buffett thanked CEO Brian Moynihan for Berkshire Hathaway's $5.3 billion profit on its Bank of America investment when the two men met earlier this month.

 

Buffett and Moynihan had a private dinner together on August 6 at the Happy Hollow Club in Omaha, where Buffett is a member.

According to people briefed on the dinner, Buffett expressed bullishness on the banking sector, especially for institutions like Bank of America that have a strong deposit base.

 

Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America and Warren Buffet, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Buffett also praised Moynihan's turnaround efforts, which have helped lift the stock more than 100 percent since Berkshire invested $5 billion in BofA in August 2011.

[Uccmal]

I am posting my thoughts here but it applies to all banks in the US. 

 

Bernanke telegraphed the end of QE, in terms of bond purchases, a few weeks ago.  The bank rally more or less stalled at that point.  I hold BAC, JPM, and WFC.  My thinking is that the shares are pricing in the end of cheap money to some degree.  Does anyone think the markets in aggregate are taking a wait and see attitude toward banks?

 

Just a thought.  I really dont know the answer. 

 

[OracleofCarolina]

BAC continues to cut costs prudently

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/08/20/4251121/bank-of-america-to-close-drive.html

 

[OracleofCarolina]

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/70858/000007085813000222/bac0822138k.htm

 

I wonder why they felt the need to update their bylaws?

[wescobrk]

I think when they release their earnings in Oct the buyback will be done with at the most $1 billion left.

The stock was higher a couple of days citi, wells and jpm was lower. I think when Moynihan met with buffett a couple of weeks ago buffett probably very diplomatically told him to get off his ass as the stock will be higher and thus more expensive the longer he waits.

When the stock is at $20 moynihan will have transferred almost $11 billion from shareholders to buffett. Hopefully buffett can save us a few hundred million by getting moynihan to actually get to work on the buyback.

[MYDemaray]

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/70858/000007085813000222/bac0822138k.htm

 

I wonder why they felt the need to update their bylaws?

 

Wonder if their attorneys promoted it as best practice in light of shareholder activism.  Many of those amendments seem to fit the bill.

[dcollon]

From Seeking Alpha:

 

BofA's legacy servicing costs are dropping fast

 

Bank of America's (BAC +0.4%) Legacy Asset Servicing costs are expected to drop to a normalized run rate of $500M per quarter by the end of 2015, says KBW's Chris Mutascio after a meeting with the bank's CFO Bruce Thompson. This compares to $2.3B in Q2 of this year. Annually, this is $7.2B in savings over the next 2 years and beyond (mostly by way of layoffs as the beefed-up staff hired to deal with non-performing mortgages is cut).

 

For this year, management now expects LAS costs to fall to $2B in Q4. This is below the $2.1B guidance given during the Q2 earnings call (transcript).

 

Mutascio doesn't have an EPS estimate beyond 2014 ($1.38), but the LAS savings represent a $0.17-$0.25 benefit, he says. He currently rates the shares a Hold with $15 price target.

[Liberty]

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/08/27/merrill-lynch-in-big-payout-for-bias-case/?hpw&_r=0

 

Merrill Lynch, one of the biggest brokerage firms on Wall Street, has agreed to pay $160 million to settle a racial bias lawsuit that wound through the federal courts for eight years, including two appeals to the United States Supreme Court.

 

The payout in the suit, which was filed on behalf of 700 black brokers who worked for Merrill, would be the largest sum ever distributed to plaintiffs in a racial discrimination suit against an American employer. Merrill, which was acquired by Bank of America after the suit was filed, also agreed to take advice from black employees on how to improve their chances of succeeding as brokers.

[Alekbaylee]

Bank of America Corp : BofA Laying Off 1,000 in Ohio as Home Refinancing Demand Wanes -Report

08/30/2013 | 07:03pm

Bank of America Corp. (BAC) is laying off about 1,000 employees in Ohio as the bank adjusts to a slowdown in home loan refinancing, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Friday on its website.

 

About 1,000 employees at the bank's facility in Beachwood on Thursday were informed their jobs would be eliminated as of Oct. 31, with an additional 155 employees at other Ohio operations also affected. A Bank of America spokesman told the newspaper that the bank is seeing less than one-third of the mortgage refinance demand compared with peak levels of 2011.

 

[MYDemaray]

Anyone have any thoughts on a Summers Fed appointment's impact on the big banks?  My understanding is that he's a somewhat favorable candidate in that regard.

[fareastwarriors]

Bank of America Corp. rose in New York trading after setting a $1.5 billion goal for its sale of China Construction Bank Corp. (939) shares, a deal that will end an eight-year investment in the Chinese lender.

 

The lender is offering its remaining 2 billion Construction Bank shares for HK$5.63 to HK$5.81 each, according to terms for the deal obtained by Bloomberg News. That’s as much as 5.1 percent below the closing price in Hong Kong for Beijing-based CCB, ranked second by market value among Chinese banks.

 

 

...

 

 

BofA Rises as Lender Seeks $1.5 Billion in CCB Stake Sale

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-03/bofa-seeks-1-5-billion-from-china-construction-bank-stake-sale.html