Bank of America Still Has Room for Improvement

John Ransom | February 23, 2014 7:54 PM

Welcome to John Ransom’s Stocks in the News where the headlines meet the trendlines:

Stock number one: Emeritus Corp.

Why Emeritus Corp. Shares Soared--The Motley Fool

What: Shares of Emeritus (NYSE: ESC) skyrocketed as much as 41% after the operator of senior living facilities in the United States agreed to be purchased by Brookdale Senior Living (NYSE: BKD) for $1.4 billion ($2.8 billion including debt).

So what: Under the terms of the deal, which was announced after the closing bell last night, Emeritus shareholders will receive 0.95 shares of Brookdale common stock, valuing the company at $29.58 per share as of this writing.

Symbol: ESC

Trailing PE: NA; Forward PE: NA

PEG: NA

Dividend: NA

Estimate Trend: Flat

Ransom Note Trendline: Sell Emeritus Corp.

ESC data by YCharts

Stock number two: Groupon, Inc.

Groupon Earnings Outlook Disappoints, Stock Falls- Investor's Business Daily

Daily deals company Groupon's (GRPN) Q1 sales guidance blew away analyst expectations, but the company said its full-year earnings would be only "slightly above" 2013 levels, sending the stock plummeting Friday.

The Chicago-based company late Thursday said it expects current-quarter sales of $710 million to $760 million, or $735 million at the midpoint. Analysts had been modeling $669 million, according to Thomson Reuters.

Symbol: GRPN

Trailing PE: NA Forward PE: 21

The news comes on the heels of yet another positive development for the bank, as a judge in New York refused to throw out an $8.5 billion settlement that Bank of America entered into in 2011. The ruling means the Charlotte-based bank is one giant step closer to fully atoning for its sins from the financial crisis.

But does this progress mean Moynihan deserved a nearly 17% raise? Motley Fool contributor John Maxfield thinks so.

Symbol: BAC

Trailing PE: NA; Forward PE: NA--- Price to book is key: 0.79

PEG:

Dividend: 0.20%

Estimate Trend: Up

Ransom Note Trendline: Buy Bank of America