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JP Morgan Chase & CoJPMDON'T BUYSep 20, 2012Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 12, 2026. Market Open.
One of the largest US banks, the gold standard. Leading across all divisions. Consistently delivers some of the strongest returns in the industry.
Just reported strong quarter, record trading revenue, earnings up 13%, revenue ahead of expectations. Pulled back on slightly higher expense guidance. Higher-quality name, trades at a premium (for good reason).
Citi is still a turnaround story. CEO has been simplifying the business -- cutting costs and focusing on strongest franchises. Strong quarter, beat on revenue and earnings. Outperforming peers. Cheaper, with more upside potential (but more risk if turnaround stops working).
She's sticking with JPM, but C is a reasonable choice if you like the turnaround angle.
There is a correlation with financial institutions in the country and internationally and it shows in the chart. He doesn't see a ton of buying volume. It is a similar situation to Royal Bank and is highly connected to the stock market index. He sees some support but wouldn't put new money into it at this point. Banks are definitely a long term holding even though every ten years they can go through a big drop from their highs.
Good indicator of bank valuations is Tangible Book Value. This one, as with all the banks, looks attractive. Trading at about 75% of Book and about 85% of Tangible Book. Probably the best of the breed in US financials. A couple of things to worry about is that banks generally make their money through the steepness of the yield curve i.e. they borrow short and lend long. With such as shallow yield curve, there is not that opportunity. Looks like the yield curve is going to be shallow for some time. Margins are dropping and they are also not really lending money. Not a lot of growth here.