JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley boost buybacks and dividends, while Citigroup and BofA take smaller steps

JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley said Friday that they were boosting both dividend payouts and share repurchases, while rivals Citigroup and Bank of America made more modest announcements.

JPMorgan, the biggest U.S. bank by assets, said it was raising its quarterly dividend 8.7% to $1.25 per share and that it authorized a new $30 billion share repurchase program.

Morgan Stanley, a dominant player in wealth management, said it was boosting its dividend 8.8% to 92.5 cents per share and authorized a $20 billion repurchase plan.

Citigroup said it was raising its dividend 5.7% to 56 cents per share and that it would “continue to assess share repurchases” on a quarterly basis.

Bank of America said it was increasing its dividend 8% to 26 cents per share. Its release made no mention of share repurchases.

The big banks announced their plans to boost capital return to shareholders after passing the annual stress test administered by the Federal Reserve this week. While all 31 banks in this year’s exam showed regulators they could withstand a severe hypothetical recession, JPMorgan said Wednesday that it could have higher losses than the Fed initially found.

Still, that would not affect its capital-return plan, the New York-based bank said Friday.

“The strength of our company allows us to continually invest in building our businesses for the future, pay a sustainable dividend, and return any remaining excess capital to our shareholders as we see fit,” JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said in his company’s release.

JPMorgan’s dividend increase was its second this year, Dimon noted.