• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Financeearnings

JPMorgan’s Stock Rose on Strong Earnings—Then Fell on Its CEO’s Buzzkill Outlook

By
Kevin Kelleher
Kevin Kelleher
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Kevin Kelleher
Kevin Kelleher
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 12, 2018, 8:01 PM ET

JPMorgan’s third-quarter earnings report offered both a bang and a whimper. The whimper echoed louder in the ears of investors.

The bang: JPMorgan’s revenue rose 5.2% to $27.8 billion, beating analyst expectations by $380 million. Earnings came in at $2.34 a share, again beating forecasts by eight cents. For a few glorious moments, investors cheered the prospect of bank earnings doing better than last week’s selloff would indicate. JPMorgan’s shares popped up 2.5%.

Then came the whimper. Once investors had a few minutes to digest CEO Jamie Dimon’s letter to shareholders, which accompanied the earnings report, they started selling.

In his letter, Dimon lavishly praised the strengths of the U.S. economy: job growth, higher wages, capital spending, etc. But he also discreetly fretted about the very themes that have troubled the U.S. stock market this week: rising interest rates and trade tensions with China. The S&P 500 lost 7% of its value during the six days before JPMorgan’s earnings report, although they rose 1.4% Friday.

“Changing expectations, whether around inflation, growth or recession (yes, there will be another recession—we just don’t know when), supply and demand, sentiment and other factors, can cause drastic volatility,” Dimon wrote. “While in the past, interest rates have been lower and for longer than people expected, they may go higher and faster than people expect.”

If that’s not the reassurance investors were hoping for, he had unsettling thoughts on trade as well, after name-checking President Trump.

“We have entered a time of uncertainty over global trade. President Trump… has begun to demand material changes in our trade agreements with many nations,” Dimon wrote in the letter. “There is always a chance that miscalculations on the part of the various actors could lead to negative outcomes. This obviously creates higher risk and more uncertainty until resolved.”

Dimon closed his thoughts on U.S. policy with words that sounded like a softly worded warning: “It is an absolute necessity that America maintain a world-class economy, with world-class companies and a world-class military. We need to do a significantly better job of managing our economy if we want it to be world class.”

On a conference call with investors, Wells Fargo Securities analyst Mike Mayo asked Dimon to expand on his comments. “Your CEO letter highlights the expectation that interest rates would go a lot higher,” Mayo said. “But, it doesn’t seem like the market is digesting it as maybe as well as you might have thought the market would digest.”

“I noted that the market may not take it that well if rates go up and—because it’ll surprise people a little, people shouldn’t be surprised,” Dimon said. “So, I was also pointing out that—just about probability that rates can go higher, people should be prepared for that. They should not be surprised about it. So, I’m always surprised when people are surprised.”

Later, on a call with reporters, Dimon found himself again defending the surprise he had delivered to investors. “I was pointing out the probabilities that I thought were higher that rates would go up. I still believe that. I do think you’re going to see higher rates,” he said. “It’s an extensive list of stuff… I’m just pointing that out. No one should be surprised if it happens down the road.”

JPMorgan’s shares gave up the early 2.5% gain and closed down 1.6% on the day.

About the Author
By Kevin Kelleher
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 22, 2026
Personal FinanceReal Estate
Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 22, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
16 minutes ago
Mortgage rates today, May 25, 2026
Personal Financemortgages
Mortgage rates today, May 25, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
16 minutes ago
Oil drops as U.S. says deal with Iran and Hormuz reopening is near
EnergyOil
Oil drops as U.S. says deal with Iran and Hormuz reopening is near
By Nicholas Lua and BloombergMay 24, 2026
8 hours ago
Russia’s economy is much worse than it seems, and ‘elites are increasingly alarmed’ as alternate GDP gauge shows huge contraction
EconomyRussia
Russia’s economy is much worse than it seems, and ‘elites are increasingly alarmed’ as alternate GDP gauge shows huge contraction
By Jason MaMay 24, 2026
9 hours ago
Alaska’s oil revival sparks a new energy rush Into the Arctic
EnergyOil
Alaska’s oil revival sparks a new energy rush Into the Arctic
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy and BloombergMay 24, 2026
11 hours ago
SpaceX stock is about to join this growing constellation of public companies building a space-based economy
Investingspace
SpaceX stock is about to join this growing constellation of public companies building a space-based economy
By Jason MaMay 24, 2026
12 hours ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
4 days ago
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
Lifestyle
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
By Sasha RogelbergMay 24, 2026
19 hours ago
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Real Estate
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
By Sydney LakeMay 24, 2026
20 hours ago
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Success
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
By Emma BurleighMay 22, 2026
3 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
5 days ago
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
Success
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
By Nick LichtenbergMay 23, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.