Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Sells 9,537 Shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. $JPM

Key Points

• Sterling Investment Counsel LLC sold 9,537 shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co., reducing its stake by 55.8% in the second quarter, leaving it with 7,566 shares worth $2.19 million.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported $4.96 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding expectations, despite a 10.5% decline in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.50 per share, reflecting a yield of 2.0% and a payout ratio of 30.79%.

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC lessened its position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Free Report) by 55.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,566 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,537 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. makes up approximately 1.3% of Sterling Investment Counsel LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $2,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC raised its position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.5% in the second quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 41,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,919,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 30,492 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,840,000 after purchasing an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. during the second quarter valued at approximately $270,000. Verus Financial Partners Inc. raised its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 38.8% during the second quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $865,000 after purchasing an additional 854 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mattern Capital Management LLC raised its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 31.7% during the second quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 4,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. stock opened at $305.35 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $839.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.13. The company's fifty day moving average is $301.37 and its 200 day moving average is $276.26. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a twelve month low of $202.16 and a twelve month high of $318.01.

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

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s payout ratio is currently 30.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on JPM shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $309.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $336.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Baird R W downgraded shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $339.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $313.89.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other JPMorgan Chase & Co. news, Director Linda Bammann sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.94, for a total transaction of $2,830,430.00. Following the sale, the director owned 82,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,492,753.58. This represents a 10.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

About JPMorgan Chase & Co.

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.

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