Eastern Bank Sells 28,224 Shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)

Key Points

• Eastern Bank has reduced its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 6.2%, selling 28,224 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with 426,521 shares valued at approximately $104.6 million.
• Insider trading activity includes COO Jennifer Piepszak selling 6,128 shares and General Counsel Stacey Friedman selling 6,608 shares, indicating a decrease in their ownership positions.
• JPMorgan Chase recently reported earnings of $4.96 EPS for the quarter, surpassing estimates, while the stock currently holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $288.68.

Eastern Bank lessened its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Free Report) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 426,521 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,224 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. makes up about 2.0% of Eastern Bank's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Eastern Bank's holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $104,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 48,732 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,682,000 after acquiring an additional 4,841 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 192,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,068,000 after acquiring an additional 1,229 shares during the period. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 13,623 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893 shares during the period. KKM Financial LLC increased its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. KKM Financial LLC now owns 16,854 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,040,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OLD Mission Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at $225,000. Institutional investors own 71.55% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

In related news, COO Jennifer Piepszak sold 6,128 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.47, for a total transaction of $1,608,416.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 62,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,392,563.85. This trade represents a 8.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Stacey Friedman sold 6,608 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.71, for a total value of $1,755,811.68. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 36,520 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,703,729.20. This trade represents a 15.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,557 shares of company stock valued at $4,113,796 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trading Up 0.0%

JPM traded up $0.07 on Wednesday, hitting $291.44. 6,326,839 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,062,375. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $282.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $262.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.88. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 12 month low of $200.20 and a 12 month high of $301.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $809.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.11.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $4.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.48 by $0.48. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a return on equity of 16.93% and a net margin of 20.52%. The business had revenue of $44.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $43.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.12 EPS. The business's revenue was down 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 18.1 earnings per share for the current year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JPM has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $305.00 price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $277.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $327.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $288.68.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Profile

JPMorgan Chase & Co is a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of financial and investment banking services. It focuses on investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing, and asset management. It operates through the following segments: Consumer and Community Banking (CCB), Commercial and Investment Bank (CIB), Asset and Wealth Management (AWM), and Corporate.