AFS Financial Group LLC Lowers Stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)

AFS Financial Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 53.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 18,109 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. comprises about 2.5% of AFS Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. AFS Financial Group LLC’s holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $2,642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,745,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 18,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,193,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC now owns 52,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares during the last quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC boosted its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 1,703 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC grew its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 8,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,514,000 after buying an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $191.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Insider Activity at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

In other JPMorgan Chase & Co. news, CEO James Dimon sold 821,778 shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.73, for a total transaction of $150,163,493.94. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 595,316 shares in the company, valued at $108,782,092.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other JPMorgan Chase & Co. news, CEO James Dimon sold 821,778 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.73, for a total transaction of $150,163,493.94. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 595,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,782,092.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Lori A. Beer sold 3,920 shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.36, for a total transaction of $765,811.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 64,783 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,656,006.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 849,303 shares of company stock worth $155,107,447 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Price Performance

Shares of JPM opened at $197.45 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $568.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.15. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 1 year low of $126.22 and a 1 year high of $200.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $186.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $166.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 12th. The financial services provider reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.73 by ($0.69). The firm had revenue of $38.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.73 billion. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 20.70%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 15.8 earnings per share for the current year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $1.15 dividend. This is a positive change from JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s payout ratio is 28.36%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Profile

JPMorgan Chase & Co operates as a financial services company worldwide. It operates through four segments: Consumer & Community Banking (CCB), Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB), Commercial Banking (CB), and Asset & Wealth Management (AWM). The CCB segment offers deposit, investment and lending products, cash management, and payments and services; mortgage origination and servicing activities; residential mortgages and home equity loans; and credit cards, auto loans, leases, and travel services to consumers and small businesses through bank branches, ATMs, and digital and telephone banking.