Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Trims Position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. $JPM

Key Points

• Ceredex Value Advisors cut its JPMorgan position by 11.9% in the second quarter, selling 16,867 shares and retaining 124,557 shares valued at approximately $40.8 million.
• Institutional investors own 71.55% of JPMorgan’s stock, with several major firms—including Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon and Dimensional Fund Advisors—recently increasing their holdings.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $359.96. JPMorgan also reported quarterly EPS of $6.14, exceeding estimates, and raised its quarterly dividend 10% to $1.65 per share.

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 11.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 124,557 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 16,867 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. makes up approximately 1.1% of Ceredex Value Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC's holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $40,771,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 15.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 65,660,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,314,681,000 after purchasing an additional 8,941,351 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at $11,396,496,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 21,642,804 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,084,339,000 after purchasing an additional 540,362 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 19,019,564 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,128,484,000 after buying an additional 110,586 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 3.3% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 18,968,884 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,578,788,000 after buying an additional 607,288 shares during the period. 71.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on JPM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $418.00 price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $360.00 target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $375.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $325.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $375.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $359.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other JPMorgan Chase & Co. news, insider Robin Leopold sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.81, for a total value of $882,025.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 71,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,066,092.07. This trade represents a 3.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Stacey Friedman sold 5,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.73, for a total value of $1,808,100.91. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 40,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,547,031.53. This represents a 11.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,467 shares of company stock valued at $3,593,651. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Here are the key news stories impacting JPMorgan Chase & Co. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its quarterly common-stock dividend by 10%, from $1.50 to $1.65 per share. The higher payout reinforces the bank’s strong capital position and increases shareholder returns, although the stock’s 1.9% indicated yield remains modest. JPMorgan’s New Dividend Signals More Cash for Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Management continues to forecast strong third-quarter investment-banking fees and trading revenue, while JPMorgan’s commercial and investment banking chief said he sees no major systemic warning signs in the U.S. economy. The outlook supports expectations for continued earnings momentum. JPMorgan Expects Investment Banking and Trading to Shine
• Positive Sentiment: Chase launched “Invest Your Points,” allowing eligible Ultimate Rewards customers to direct credit-card points into qualifying J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing or advised accounts. The feature could deepen customer relationships and funnel assets into JPMorgan’s wealth-management business. Chase Expands Ultimate Rewards With Invest Your Points
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reduced its JPMorgan price target to $436 from $452 but maintained a Buy rating. The lower target may temper near-term enthusiasm, while the rating still implies substantial longer-term upside. Goldman Sachs Adjusts JPMorgan Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded JPMorgan from Strong Buy to Hold, adding short-term pressure after the stock’s strong run and raising concerns that earnings growth may be slowing. JPMorgan Versus Wells Fargo
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan’s Federal Reserve scenario analysis projects a potential 2% S&P 500 decline if policymakers signal that rates must move materially higher. Because banks are sensitive to economic growth, credit quality and market activity, uncertainty over Chair Kevin Warsh’s guidance is likely weighing on financial stocks. JPMorgan Fed Scenario Analysis

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stock Down 1.0%

JPM opened at $349.10 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $353.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $323.32. The company has a market cap of $927.96 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.98. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 1 year low of $279.10 and a 1 year high of $366.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.55. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a net margin of 21.86% and a return on equity of 18.23%. The company had revenue of $58.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $50.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.96 earnings per share. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s revenue for the quarter was up 27.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 24.3 earnings per share for the current year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, October 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.65 per share. This represents a $6.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. This is a positive change from JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.71%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Profile

JPMorgan Chase & Co is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City. Through its businesses, the company provides banking, lending, payments, investment banking, asset management and wealth management services to consumers, businesses, institutional clients and governments.

The company operates through four primary business areas: Consumer & Community Banking; Commercial & Investment Banking; Asset & Wealth Management; and Corporate. Its offerings include deposit accounts, credit cards, mortgages, auto loans, business banking, commercial lending, treasury services, investment banking, securities trading, investment management and private banking.

JPMorgan Chase serves customers in the United States and maintains operations and client relationships across numerous international markets.

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