Who Are Bank of America’s Main Competitors? (BAC, JPM)

The primary competitors of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) are the other three major money center banks in the United States: JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Citigroup (NYSE: C). Based on total deposits, the largest of the "big four" is JPMorgan Chase. Bank of America is second, Wells Fargo third and Citigroup, formerly number one, is fourth as of 2015.

Bank of America Corporation is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. By virtue of its 2008 acquisition of Merrill Lynch, BAC is the single-largest wealth management company worldwide. It also has the most widespread retail banking presence, being the only one of the big four with retail branches in all 50 states. Bank of America achieved its current size through mergers and acquisitions over the years, notably of Fleet Boston Financial, Countrywide Financial and NationsBank. In 2010, Forbes ranked Bank of America as the third-largest corporation in the world. Bank of America operates investment and commercial banking services worldwide, with a presence in nearly 50 countries. It has, by far, the most impressive earnings per share, or EPS, growth rate of the major banks at 45.16%. Bank of America's market capitalization is $171 billion. Its return-on-assets ratio, or ROA, is 0.60%, and its net profit margin is 10.49%. It has a notably low price-to-book ratio, or P/B ratio, of only 0.73, and a quick ratio of 0.93.

JPMorgan Chase & Company, headquartered in New York City, was established through a merger between JP Morgan Bank and Chase Manhattan Bank in 2000. It is ranked as the fourth largest bank in the world. Like the other major banks, JPMorgan Chase is the result of a series of mergers and acquisitions, including acquisitions of Bear Stearns, Bank One and the Bank of Chicago. JPMorgan Chase provides a vast array of commercial and investment banking services in more than 70 countries, operating dozens of business lines through four primary divisions: consumer and community banking, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and asset management. The bank's market cap is $235 billion. Its 2015 ROA ratio is 0.91%, and it has an impressive return-on-equity ratio, or ROE, of 10.64%. Its net margin is 23.15%. JPMorgan Chase also has a relatively low P/B ratio of 1.08. The bank's 2015 earnings per share growth rate is 5.46%, and its quick ratio is 1.01.

Wells Fargo & Company is ranked as the world's largest bank by market capitalization, with a total market cap of $277 billion. In 2014, it was recognized by a comparison study of 500 banks as having the most valuable brand name among banks. Wells Fargo is headquartered in San Francisco and has the distinction of operating under the first national bank charter granted in the United States. Key Wells Fargo acquisitions include First Interstate Bancorp, Norwest Financial and Wachovia Bank. Wells Fargo operates more than 50 business lines through offices in more than 35 countries. Its 2015 ROA ratio of 1.35% is the highest for the group, as is its 13.78% ROE; however, its 1.98% earnings per share growth rate is the lowest of the group. Wells Fargo's net margin is 25.74%, and its quick ratio is 0.9. Among the big four banks, Wells Fargo has the highest customer satisfaction rating and the lowest number of consumer complaints.

Citigroup Inc., headquartered in New York, was formed in 1998 through the $140 billion merger of Citicorp Bank and Travelers Group, creating what was at the time the world's largest financial services corporation. Citigroup is the most multinational of the big four banks, with operations in over 100 countries. Citigroup was the largest bank in the world prior to the 2008 financial crisis, but the losses it suffered during the crisis eventually dropped it to fourth place among the big four. Citigroup's market cap value is $157 billion. Its 2015 ROA is 0.73%, and its return-on-equity ratio is 6.62%. Citigroup's net margin is 10.77%. Its P/B ratio of 0.77 is just a bit higher than Bank of America's. Citigroup's 2015 EPS growth rate is 14.17%, and it has a quick ratio of 1.02.