JPMorgan: We No Longer Think Santander Consumer USA Will Outperform

In a report published Wednesday, JPMorgan analysts downgraded the rating on

from Overweight to Neutral, while maintaining the price target at $22. Following the recent appreciation, Santander's share price now fully reflects the "underlying strength of the business model." "We note that our thesis on the stock is generally unchanged, although we note the increased regulatory challenges for SC (as a result of the Fed's recent CCAR objection to SC's capital plan)," the analysts said. "SC remains a proven leader in the auto finance sector with a 10-year history of profitable growth. The company's 10-year partnership with Chrysler, which we believe is not in jeopardy, provides visibility to scalable growth, but we believe that is fully reflected in the current share price," the analysts added. The EPS estimate for 2016 has been raised modestly from $2.51 to $2.52.