NEW YORK (Associated Press) - UBS Securities LLC on Friday downgraded the shares of Bank of America Corp., citing increasing credit pressures, especially within its credit card portfolio.

In a note to clients, analyst Matthew D. O'Connor cut the rating on the shares to "Neutral" from "Buy," but raised the 12-month target price on the stock to $31 from $29.50.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank's liquidity position is among the strongest in the industry, O'Connor said, adding that he does not expect the bank to raise additional capital or cut its dividend.

However, the availability of credit is declining, even for good customers, O'Connor said, increasing the risk that the credit crunch will spread to other parts of the bank. Bank of America, for example, is cutting credit lines for home equity and cards.

O'Connor estimates that Bank of America credit card losses could total between 7 percent and 8 percent _ higher than the company's expectations of between 6 percent and 6.5 percent _ due to continued rising unemployment and declining availability of credit.

Bank of America shares rose 54 cents to $32.06 in afternoon trading. Shares have traded between $18.44 and $52.96 in the past 12 months.