JPMorgan Chase (JPM) , which last week posted strong fourth-quarter results, saw its return on shareholder equity rise to 11% from 9% a year earlier.
Full-year 2016 return on shareholder equity was almost 10%, in line with where it performed in 2015 but up from 9.4% in 2014 and 8.5% in 2013.
The financial services giant is heading in the right direction, yet its performance is way below where it was before the Great Recession, when its return on equity was in excess of 15%. That is the general standard for a company that wants to be seen as one that holds a sustainable competitive advantage.
