Business Insight Zone

Let’s see . . . has anything interesting happened since the last time JPMorgan was our Company of the Day? Ah, yes, the wee little heir to the banking legacy of J. Pierpont Morgan bought a collapsing Bear Stearns (with a big financial backstop provided by Uncle Sam) and the assets of the bankrupt Washington Mutual (to the relief of the FDIC), all while earning glowing tributes (including from yours truly) for weathering the current market typhoon better than almost all of its rivals.

But even though this part of the House of Morgan has expanded its footprint in both investment banking and retail banking with this year’s acquisitions, it can’t escape all of the ravages affecting the markets, and it can’t help but be whipsawed by investor expectations that are all over the map. When the bank reported earnings this week, headline writers seemed torn between the urges to harp on the huge decline in its earnings or to praise it for turning in decent numbers in the face of cataclysmic change. (Contrasting examples: “JPMorgan profit plummets on loan losses” from Reuters, “JPMorgan Chase posts surprise profit” from CNNMoney.)

Amid all the tumult, the company has just become the largest bank in the United States — passing Citigroup — in terms of assets. The WaMu deal expands its already-huge retail operations, especially on the West Coast. And the infusion of money coming from the Feds should only increase JPMorgan’s ability to make deals.

CEO Jamie Dimon has warned that tight times will continue. But his bank looks well-poised to carry on the legacy of its namesake founder for a long while to come.

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Related links:

• Company of the Day archive.
• 1907 redux?
• Jamie Dimon is smart.

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Category: Company of the Day, Finance & Real Estate