The J.P. Morgan Team Behind JEPI and How It Runs the Fund
JEPI is managed by J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc., part of J.P. Morgan Asset Management, and run day to day by four portfolio managers. Hamilton Reiner and Raffaele Zingone have managed the fund since it launched in May 2020. Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen joined them in 2024.
Behind the four managers sits J.P. Morgan’s US equity research team, which studies companies one at a time and ranks them on value. The managers use those rankings to choose JEPI’s stocks, and they also decide how the fund sells the options that produce most of its income.
If you don’t know who is making the decisions with your money, you can’t judge whether to trust them. FRC’s research-driven How to Invest in JEPI course shows you what almost nobody explains: who runs JEPI, how they choose every stock, what they measure themselves against and what you can and cannot see as a shareholder. In 20 structured chapters built from J.P. Morgan’s own filings, you learn to judge the team on its results, not its reputation. Follow the link to the course, watch the video and decide for yourself.
This guide sets out JEPI’s managers, the team behind them, how they pick stocks, the benchmark they are measured against and what active management means for your money. For how the fund works as a whole, see FRC’s complete guide to JEPI, the JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF.
JEPI’s Portfolio Managers
These are the four portfolio managers named in JEPI’s summary prospectus. Years of experience are from J.P. Morgan’s fund page, read on 10 November 2026.
| Manager | Title | On JEPI Since | Years in Industry | Years at J.P. Morgan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Reiner | Managing Director | 2020 (launch) | 39 | 17 |
| Raffaele Zingone | Managing Director | 2020 (launch) | 35 | 35 |
| Matthew Bensen | Executive Director | 2024 | 11 | 11 |
| Judy Jansen | Executive Director | 2024 | 11 | 11 |
J.P. Morgan’s launch announcement of 21 May 2020 described Hamilton Reiner as the lead portfolio manager and Head of U.S. Equity Derivatives. Derivatives are contracts, such as options, whose value depends on something else, which fits a fund built around selling call options.
Between them, the two founding managers have 74 years in the industry. The two newer managers have spent their whole careers to date at J.P. Morgan.
Manager History Since Launch
| When | Change |
|---|---|
| Launch prospectus (18 May 2020) | Hamilton Reiner and Raffaele Zingone named as portfolio managers |
| 2024 | Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen added; the exact effective date could not be confirmed |
| Summary prospectus (1 Nov 2025) | All four listed; no departures found |
| Summary prospectus (1 Nov 2026) | All four still listed |
In plain terms, JEPI has had the same two lead managers for its whole life, with two additions and no departures found in any document reviewed. That stability is worth knowing, because in an active fund the people are part of the product.
The Three Layers of People Behind JEPI
| Layer | Who | What They Do |
|---|---|---|
| Fund provider | J.P. Morgan Asset Management | Offers the fund and publishes its documents and fund page |
| Adviser | J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc. | The legal entity that manages the fund’s money under the prospectus |
| Portfolio managers | Reiner, Zingone, Bensen and Jansen | Make the final decisions on what the fund owns |
| Research analysts | J.P. Morgan’s US equity research team | Study companies and estimate what they are worth |
A portfolio manager is the person accountable for the fund’s holdings. A research analyst studies a group of companies in depth, usually within one industry, and passes findings to the managers.
One J.P. Morgan page describing JEPI says the fund draws on more than 20 research analysts. J.P. Morgan’s own documents do not all give the same number, so treat the exact count as approximate.
Who Manages JEPQ?
JEPQ, JEPI’s Nasdaq-100 sister fund, launched on 3 May 2022 and shares most of JEPI’s team. Its portfolio managers are Hamilton Reiner, Eric Moreau, Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen.
| Fund | Portfolio Managers | Launched | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| JEPI | Hamilton Reiner, Raffaele Zingone, Matthew Bensen, Judy Jansen | 20 May 2020 | 0.35% |
| JEPQ | Hamilton Reiner, Eric Moreau, Matthew Bensen, Judy Jansen | 3 May 2022 | 0.35% |
Three managers run both funds. The difference is that Raffaele Zingone is named on JEPI and Eric Moreau on JEPQ, with 13 years in the industry according to J.P. Morgan’s JEPQ fact sheet as of 30 September 2026.
J.P. Morgan’s JEPQ fund page says Hamilton Reiner and Eric Moreau use a data science approach to fundamental research and portfolio construction. JEPQ applies it to the Nasdaq-100, a more technology-heavy index than the S&P 500 behind JEPI. For how the two funds differ in holdings, income and returns, see FRC’s comparison of JEPI vs JEPQ.
The Same Team Runs the Mutual Fund
The strategy is older than the ETF. J.P. Morgan’s mutual fund version, the JPMorgan Equity Premium Income Fund, began on 31 August 2018, almost two years before JEPI.
As of 9 November 2026, the mutual fund held about $4.74 billion, and J.P. Morgan lists the same four portfolio managers as JEPI. A mutual fund is bought and sold directly with the fund company at one price a day, rather than traded on an exchange like JEPI.
Know Who Is Running Your Money
An actively managed fund is only as good as the decisions behind it. Don’t buy JEPI on its yield alone: the income, the stock choices and the cap on your gains all come from what four people decide.
FRC’s How to Invest in JEPI course takes you through the managers, the stock process, the benchmark, the lower-volatility aim, turnover and a yearly checklist for keeping track of the team. Every figure is dated and taken from J.P. Morgan’s prospectus, fund page and annual reports.
FRC’s three progressive ETF programmes teach you how to judge any fund, active or passive. ETF Investing for Beginners explains the difference between index funds and actively managed ETFs. ETF Investing Strategies shows how to choose between them, and Advanced ETF Investing covers manager risk, fees and performance measurement.
A fund manager’s name on a fact sheet is not a guarantee. Understanding what the team does, and how to check its results, is what lets you hold the fund with confidence or walk away from it.
Active and Passive: Two Ways to Run a Fund
Passive management means a fund follows the published rules of an index and owns what the index owns, in the same proportions. Active management means a team uses research and judgment to decide what to buy, what to sell and when.
| Question | Passive (Index) Fund | Active Fund Like JEPI |
|---|---|---|
| Who decides what to hold? | The index rules | A team of analysts and portfolio managers |
| When do holdings change? | At the index’s scheduled reviews | Whenever the team’s views change |
| What does it cost? | Usually very little | More, to pay for research and trading |
| Example | SCHD at 0.06% | JEPI at 0.35% |
SCHD, for example, tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index, so nobody at the fund decides that one company looks cheap or another looks risky. For more on that fund, see FRC’s guide to what SCHD is.
On $20,000, the fee gap between 0.35% and 0.06% is $58 a year: $70 for JEPI against $12 for SCHD. That difference pays for the research and the managers’ decisions.
The Two Active Decisions Inside JEPI
JEPI’s managers make two kinds of decisions. The first is which stocks to own and how much of each, for about 85% of the fund. The second is how to sell the S&P 500 call options inside the equity-linked notes that produce most of the income.
The prospectus lets JEPI hold up to 20% of its net assets in those notes. On 30 June 2026, the notes made up about 13.7%. J.P. Morgan has not published exactly how it chooses each strike price, so that part of the managers’ work stays out of view.
How JEPI’s Managers Pick Stocks
JEPI’s prospectus describes a three-step process for the stock portfolio. The wording below is paraphrased from J.P. Morgan’s summary prospectus.
| Step | What J.P. Morgan Says It Does | Plain-English Version |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Research | Analysts study companies, and their findings let the adviser rank companies by relative value | Learn the business, then judge which companies look cheap or expensive compared with each other |
| 2. Valuation | Rankings are produced with models that turn the research into numbers | Put the analysts’ views into a consistent scoring system |
| 3. Stock selection | The adviser builds a portfolio with a lower volatility level than the large-cap market | Pick from the ranked list, shaping the mix so it swings less than the market |
Valuation means estimating what a company is worth and comparing that estimate with its share price. As a hypothetical, a stock priced at $100 with an estimated value of $120 has potential upside of 20%, and ranks above a stock priced at $50 with an estimated value of $55, which has potential upside of 10%.
What Else the Managers Weigh
| Factor | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Catalysts | A reason the price could move toward the estimated value, such as improving results |
| Impact on overall risk | How adding the stock changes the swings of the whole portfolio |
| Reward compared with risk | A high potential gain relative to the potential loss |
| Temporary mispricing | A price the team believes has fallen too far because the market overreacted |
| ESG factors | Environmental, social and governance issues, assessed for many companies; JEPI is not an ESG fund |
None of these factors is dividend income. The prospectus says JEPI’s stocks are not selected based on anticipated dividend payments.
The top-ranked stock is not always the biggest holding. A stock that ranks first on value but swings twice as much as the market may be held in a smaller amount than a lower-ranked stock that swings less. J.P. Morgan describes the result as a defensive portfolio built from its own risk-adjusted stock rankings. For what that process produces, see FRC’s guide to JEPI’s holdings.
What the Managers Are Measured Against
JEPI’s prospectus names the S&P 500 Total Return Index as its primary benchmark. A total-return index assumes every dividend is reinvested, which keeps a comparison with JEPI’s own total return fair.
J.P. Morgan’s US marketing says JEPI seeks to deliver a significant portion of the S&P 500’s returns with less volatility. That is marketing, not a promise, and “a significant portion” has no fixed number.
The Team’s Record Against the Benchmark
| Period to 30 Sep 2026 | JEPI (at NAV) | S&P 500 | 3-Month Treasury Bills |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 6.62% | 15.74% | 3.65% |
| 3 years (a year) | 10.05% | 22.89% | 4.49% |
| 5 years (a year) | 7.78% | 13.79% | 3.71% |
| Since launch (a year) | 10.81% | 17.72% | 2.92% |
Over every period shown, JEPI earned less than the S&P 500 and more than Treasury bills. Since launch, it earned about 61% of the market’s yearly rate (10.81 ÷ 17.72), and about 44% over the three strong years to 30 September 2026.
| Calendar Year | JEPI (at NAV) | S&P 500 | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 21.61% | 28.71% | S&P 500 |
| 2022 | -3.54% | -18.11% | JEPI |
| 2023 | 9.88% | 26.29% | S&P 500 |
| 2024 | 12.56% | 25.02% | S&P 500 |
| 2025 | 8.07% | 17.88% | S&P 500 |
JEPI finished ahead in one of the five years: 2022, the year the market fell. That is what its design predicts, and its prospectus says the fund may underperform its benchmark, particularly in rising markets. For every year in detail, see FRC’s JEPI performance history.
The Lower-Volatility Aim
JEPI’s prospectus says the fund seeks a lower level of volatility than the US large-cap market, judged over a full market cycle of typically three to five years. Lower volatility means smaller swings on average, not that the fund cannot fall.
| Measure (3 Years to 30 Sep 2026) | JEPI | S&P 500 | What It Tells You |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard deviation | 7.78 | 12.42 | JEPI’s returns swung about 63% as widely as the market’s |
| Beta | 0.42 | 1.00 | JEPI tended to move a little under half as much as the market |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.73 | 1.36 | The market gave more return for each unit of swing over this period |
On the swings, the team delivered what it aimed for. On return per unit of swing, the S&P 500 did better over a strongly rising three years. For how these measures work, see FRC’s guide to standard deviation vs beta.
Lower swings still include real falls. JEPI fell about 13.7% from its April 2022 high to its September 2022 low, including distributions, and in September 2026 it returned -1.62% while the S&P 500 returned -0.35%. J.P. Morgan states no numeric volatility or beta target.
How Often the Managers Trade
JEPI’s prospectus says its strategies may involve active and frequent trading. The annual reports show turnover of between 172% and 195% in every fiscal year from 2022 to 2026.
| Fiscal Year (to 30 June) | Portfolio Turnover |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 195% |
| 2023 | 190% |
| 2024 | 174% |
| 2025 | 172% |
| 2026 | 180% |
At 180%, a $10,000 stock portfolio would see about $18,000 of stock bought or sold in a year, and the average holding period works out at roughly seven months. SCHD’s turnover was 40.61% as of 30 September 2026, an average holding period of about two and a half years.
Trading costs are paid from the fund’s assets and are not included in the 0.35% expense ratio. JEPI paid no distributions from realised capital gains in fiscal years 2021 to 2025, but high turnover is listed as one of its principal risks.
What Active Management Means for You
| What the Managers Offer | What It Costs or Risks |
|---|---|
| A portfolio shaped for lower swings, rather than whatever an index holds | The team can be wrong; the prospectus warns it may not achieve lower volatility |
| The ability to change course as markets change | You cannot predict the holdings, and the portfolio can drift from what you first bought |
| Company-by-company research | Research costs money: 0.35% against 0.06% for SCHD |
| Experienced, long-serving managers | Key-person risk: results may change if managers leave |
Key-person risk is the risk that a fund changes in character when an important manager leaves. It is a much bigger concern in an active fund, where decisions rest on people, than in an index fund, where they rest on rules.
What You Can and Cannot See
| You Can See | You Cannot See |
|---|---|
| The holdings and their weights on a stated date | Why each stock was bought or sold |
| The stated process: research, valuation, selection | The models and the analysts’ estimates |
| The notes, their issuers and maturity dates in the annual reports | How strike prices are chosen |
| The managers’ names and start years | How decisions are shared among the four managers |
None of this is unusual for an active fund. It does mean that judging JEPI rests partly on trust in the process, checked against the results it produces over time.
How to Keep Track of JEPI’s Managers
The management section of JEPI’s summary prospectus names each portfolio manager and the year they started on the fund. If a manager joins or leaves between yearly updates, the fund files a supplement, a short document that amends the prospectus. J.P. Morgan’s JEPI fund page also lists the current managers.
A Yearly Check for JEPI Owners
- Managers: has anyone joined or left since your last check?
- Strategy: has the objective, the 20% note limit or the benchmark changed?
- Fee: is it still 0.35%?
- Turnover: has it jumped well outside the 170% to 195% range of recent years?
- Results: how have income, swings and returns compared with the S&P 500 over three to five years?
An active fund will trail its benchmark in some years by design. Judging the team on one year, rather than on its stated aims over a full cycle, leads to decisions based on noise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who manages JEPI?
J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc. is the adviser, and the fund is run by four portfolio managers: Hamilton Reiner, Raffaele Zingone, Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen. Reiner and Zingone have managed JEPI since its launch in May 2020, and Bensen and Jansen joined in 2024.
Who is the lead portfolio manager of JEPI?
J.P. Morgan’s launch announcement of 21 May 2020 described Hamilton Reiner as the lead portfolio manager and Head of U.S. Equity Derivatives. He had 39 years in the industry and 17 at J.P. Morgan, according to the fund page read on 10 November 2026.
Who manages JEPI and JEPQ?
Hamilton Reiner, Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen manage both funds. Raffaele Zingone is also named on JEPI, and Eric Moreau on JEPQ.
Has JEPI’s management team changed?
Two managers were added in 2024, Matthew Bensen and Judy Jansen. No departures were found in any document reviewed, from the launch prospectus of May 2020 to the summary prospectus of 1 November 2026.
When did JEPI launch?
JEPI began operating on 20 May 2020, with Hamilton Reiner and Raffaele Zingone named as its portfolio managers from the start. The strategy itself dates back to J.P. Morgan’s mutual fund version, which began on 31 August 2018.
What companies make up JEPI?
About 110 mainly large US companies chosen by the managers, plus 15 equity-linked notes from seven banks and a little cash. On J.P. Morgan’s fund page as of 6 November 2026, the largest stocks included Mastercard, Microsoft, Apple and Visa, each at about 2% of the fund.
Is JEPI actively managed?
Yes. J.P. Morgan’s team chooses the stocks using its own research and rankings, and decides how to sell the call options inside the equity-linked notes. JEPI does not track an index.
What is JEPI’s benchmark?
The S&P 500 Total Return Index. JEPI measures itself against it but deliberately owns something different, aiming for income and smaller swings rather than the full market return.
Does JEPI’s manager pick stocks for dividends?
No. The prospectus says JEPI’s stocks are not selected based on anticipated dividend payments. They are chosen for value and to keep the portfolio’s swings lower than the market’s.
What is key-person risk in JEPI?
It is the risk that the fund changes in character or performs differently if an important manager leaves. Because JEPI’s decisions rest on its team, checking the manager list once or twice a year is a sensible habit.
Judge the Team by Its Results
JEPI is run by an experienced, stable team that has kept the same two lead managers since launch. That team chooses every stock, sets every option sale and is measured against an S&P 500 it is not trying to beat in rising markets.
Before you hand that team your money, understand how it works, what it aims for and how to check whether it is delivering. FRC’s How to Invest in JEPI course brings the managers, the process, the record and the risks together in 20 structured chapters, and FRC’s guide to JEPI explains how the fund works from start to finish.
This article is general education, not investment advice. Fund managers and their records change, and past performance does not guarantee future results.
