World Investment Advisors Lowers Position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. $JPM

Key Points

• World Investment Advisors reduced its JPMorgan Chase stake by 2.1% in the first quarter, selling 5,080 shares and leaving it with 240,938 shares worth about $70.9 million. JPMorgan still ranked as the firm’s 9th-largest position.
• Several major analysts turned more bullish on JPM, including price-target hikes from UBS, Bank of America, Argus, and Piper Sandler. Despite that optimism, the stock’s overall consensus rating remains Hold with an average target of $345.33.
• JPMorgan recently reported strong quarterly results, beating estimates with EPS of $5.94 on revenue of $50.54 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, payable July 31, and insiders have sold shares in recent months.

World Investment Advisors trimmed its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 240,938 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,080 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. accounts for 1.1% of World Investment Advisors' portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. World Investment Advisors' holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $70,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Counterweight Ventures LLC boosted its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 1.5% during the first quarter. Counterweight Ventures LLC now owns 15,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,569,000 after buying an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC now owns 46,502 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,679,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares in the last quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 13,218 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,888,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 4WEALTH Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. 4WEALTH Advisors Inc. now owns 2,375 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $674,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 72,338 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,279,000 after acquiring an additional 5,641 shares during the period. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about JPMorgan Chase & Co.

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS and Bank of America raised their price targets on JPMorgan Chase & Co. NYSE: JPM, reinforcing a bullish outlook from major Wall Street firms.
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan Chase & Co. NYSE: JPM is approaching its July 14 earnings report with analysts expecting earnings growth and a potential beat.
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary suggests trading and investment-banking activity may have been strong in the second quarter, which could boost JPMorgan Chase & Co. NYSE: JPM results.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that big banks are exploring a payments deal to work around debit-card fee caps could be strategically important, but the direct impact on JPMorgan Chase & Co. NYSE: JPM remains uncertain.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles highlighted JPMorgan’s market commentary on currencies, semiconductors, and broader equities, which reflect the firm’s research activity more than a direct earnings driver.
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan Chase & Co. NYSE: JPM ceased to be a substantial holder in Clarity Pharmaceuticals, a routine portfolio update with limited likely impact on the stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on JPM. Argus upped their target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $340.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $325.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. DZ Bank reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $361.00 target price on JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $362.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $345.33.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Price Performance

JPM opened at $339.06 on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a one year low of $279.10 and a one year high of $343.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $314.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $309.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $908.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.99.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $5.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.50 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $50.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $48.30 billion. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a net margin of 20.66% and a return on equity of 17.54%. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.07 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 22.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 28.74%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jeremy Barnum sold 5,611 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.55, for a total value of $1,720,052.05. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 35,460 shares in the company, valued at $10,870,263. This trade represents a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Jennifer Piepszak sold 9,136 shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.56, for a total value of $2,800,732.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 90,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,590,706.56. The trade was a 9.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 33,623 shares of company stock valued at $10,427,835 over the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co NYSE: JPM is a diversified global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. The company provides a wide range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, small businesses, corporations, governments and institutional investors worldwide. Its operations span retail banking, commercial lending, investment banking, asset management, payments and card services, and treasury and securities services.

The firm's principal business activities are organized across several core lines: Consumer & Community Banking, which offers deposit accounts, mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and branch and digital banking under the Chase brand; Corporate & Investment Banking, which provides capital markets, advisory, underwriting, trading and risk management services; Commercial Banking, delivering lending, treasury and capital solutions to middle-market and corporate clients; and Asset & Wealth Management, which offers investment management, private banking and retirement services to institutions and high-net-worth individuals.

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