Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Increases Stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC boosted its position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $2,003,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JPM. DDD Partners LLC boosted its stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. DDD Partners LLC now owns 1,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $622,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Almanack Investment Partners LLC. grew its holdings in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. now owns 5,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,233,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. 71.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Price Performance

JPMorgan Chase & Co. stock opened at $242.97 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $257.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $240.77. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 12 month low of $179.20 and a 12 month high of $280.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $679.36 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.10.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $4.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.03 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $42.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.90 billion. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a net margin of 20.96% and a return on equity of 16.99%. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.04 EPS. Equities analysts predict that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 18.1 earnings per share for the current year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

In other news, insider Robin Leopold sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.09, for a total value of $337,612.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 50,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,606,323.93. This trade represents a 2.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Stacey Friedman sold 3,303 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.94, for a total value of $838,763.82. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 47,620 shares in the company, valued at $12,092,622.80. This represents a 6.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 76,848 shares of company stock valued at $19,987,908. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on JPM. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $269.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $215.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $276.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $304.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $252.89.

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.