Bank of America Is ‘Knocking It Out of the Park,’ Holland Says: Tom Keene

By Charles Mead - Oct 19, 2011 2:42 AM GMT+0700

Bank of America Corp. (BAC) is “knocking it out of the park” with third-quarter revenue that beat analysts’ estimates by almost $3 billion, said Michael Holland, chairman of New York-based investment firm Holland & Co.

The $28.7 billion in revenue “is a big number,” Holland said today in an interview with Ken Prewitt and Tom Keene on “Bloomberg Surveillance.” The Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank was expected to post revenue of $25.9 billion, according to the average estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Bank of America, which lost its status as the biggest U.S. lender by assets during the quarter, swung to a profit as credit quality improved and the firm booked one-time gains. Chief Executive Officer Brian T. Moynihan, 52, is divesting businesses and cutting jobs as he seeks to trim $5 billion in annual costs.

For some investors, including billionaire Warren Buffett, the goal is “to see the political target -- that big bull’s-eye on the back of Bank of America -- diminish over time,” Holland said.

Critics including President Barack Obama objected to the firm’s plan to charge customers $5 a month for using debit cards. Five U.S. House Democrats asked Attorney General Eric Holder on Oct. 13 to investigate whether banks and their trade groups colluded on decisions to impose new fees after the Federal Reserve, acting on a mandate of the Dodd-Frank Act, capped so-called debit-card swipe fees charged to merchants.

Bank of America advanced 10 percent to $6.66 at 3:23 p.m. in New York trading, the most since August, making it the day’s best performer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

To contact the reporter on this story: Charles Mead in New York at cmead11@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Scheer at dscheer@bloomberg.net