JPMorgan Chase & Co. $JPM Shares Sold by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group reduced its JPMorgan stake by 5.5% in the second quarter, selling 19,380 shares and retaining 331,758 shares worth approximately $108.6 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 71.55% of JPMorgan.
• JPMorgan reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $6.14 beating estimates of $5.59 and revenue rising 27.7% year over year to $58.02 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with a $359.96 average price target.
• Shares opened at $356.77, near their 52-week high of $366.50. Key risks include elevated equity valuations, potential political and regulatory costs, and recent insider selling conducted under pre-arranged trading plans.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI decreased its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Free Report) by 5.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 331,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,380 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. makes up approximately 1.3% of Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $108,595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 66,385,268 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,390,662,000 after purchasing an additional 939,421 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 15.8% in 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 purchased a new position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the fourth quarter worth about $11,396,496,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,424,482 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,547,837,000 after purchasing an additional 1,194,583 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 110,586 shares during the period. 71.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan’s profitability and capital-return capacity remain major supports. Recent coverage highlighted approximately $16.9 billion in quarterly profit, with dividends consuming only a portion of earnings, leaving room for reinvestment, buybacks and future distributions. JPMorgan earnings and dividend coverage
• Positive Sentiment: The bank is expanding its European corporate-banking operations, including a reported 25% staffing increase and a push into Greece. The strategy could create additional lending, payments, investment-banking and cross-selling revenue over time. JPMorgan Greece expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment remains constructive, with JPMorgan described as a well-capitalized bank trading at an attractive valuation relative to its earnings, scale and exposure to investment banking, asset management and higher interest rates. The average analyst rating is “Moderate Buy.” JPMorgan analyst sentiment
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider Robin Leopold sold 2,500 shares for approximately $882,000 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale reduced her direct holdings by 3.4%, but its planned nature makes it a limited signal about management’s outlook. JPMorgan insider transaction
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan strategists warned that the equity risk premium has fallen to its lowest level since 2002. The unusually narrow compensation for owning stocks instead of bonds could limit broad market upside and increase sensitivity to disappointing economic or earnings news. JPMorgan equity risk premium warning
• Negative Sentiment: The bank’s decision to contest pressure from the Trump administration may protect its independence but could bring additional litigation, regulatory and political costs. JPMorgan political and legal risks

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:JPM opened at $356.77 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $948.37 billion, a PE ratio of 15.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.98. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $279.10 and a fifty-two week high of $366.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $352.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $322.29.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Robin Leopold sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $352.81, for a total value of $882,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 71,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,066,092.07. This represents a 3.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Stacey Friedman sold 5,467 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.73, for a total transaction of $1,808,100.91. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 40,961 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,547,031.53. This represents a 11.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 10,467 shares of company stock worth $3,593,651 in the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on JPM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $418.00 target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $370.00 to $384.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $359.96.

About JPMorgan Chase & Co.

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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