Virtus Advisers LLC Lowers Holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. $JPM

Key Points

• Virtus Advisers LLC sold 2,865 shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. during the first quarter, reducing its holdings by 56.1% to 2,239 shares, valued at approximately $549,000.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported earnings of $4.96 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.48, although revenue was down 10.5% year-over-year.
• The stock has seen a market cap of $813.90 billion with a current price range between its 52-week low of $200.61 and high of $301.29.

Virtus Advisers LLC cut its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Free Report) by 56.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,239 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,865 shares during the quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC's holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in JPM. Florida Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 62.5% in the first quarter. Florida Financial Advisors LLC now owns 9,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,416,000 after acquiring an additional 3,792 shares during the period. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $471,000. Crown Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 5.4% in the first quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,320 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,060,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Mosaic Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.8% in the first quarter. Mosaic Financial Group LLC now owns 9,296 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,280,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 19.5% in the first quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 2,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $630,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JPM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $305.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $327.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI set a $298.00 price objective on JPMorgan Chase & Co. and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Baird R W downgraded JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, TD Securities restated a "buy" rating on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $288.68.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jennifer Piepszak sold 6,128 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.47, for a total value 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 approximately $16,392,563.85. This represents a 8.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:JPM traded up $1.23 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $302.30. 3,017,615 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,708,993. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 12 month low of $200.61 and a 12 month high of $302.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $831.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.11. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $291.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.15.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $4.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.48 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $44.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.76 billion. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a return on equity of 16.93% and a net margin of 20.52%.The company's revenue was down 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.12 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 18.1 earnings per share for the current year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Company 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.