Diverse services cut the risk for investors

Article Excerpt

J.P. Morgan remains a great choice for the Finance segment of your portfolio despite the negative impact of low interest rates. That’s due to its strong exposure to fee-based activities like corporate financing. The bank should also resume regular dividend increases in 2021. J.P. MORGAN CHASE & CO. $128 is a buy. The bank (New York symbol JPM; Income Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 3.1 billion; Market cap: $396.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.8; Dividend yield: 2.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.jpmorganchase.com) is the largest banking firm in the U.S., with total assets of $3.39 trillion as of December 31, 2020. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Morgan’s stock has jumped over 80% from its March 2020 low of $76. That’s because higher trading volumes and demand for corporate financing and underwriting offset the impact of lower interest rates on its consumer lending businesses. As a result, revenue still gained 23.8% in the past five years, from $96.57 billion in 2016 to $119.54 billion in 2020. A charge stemming from…