JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s third-quarter profit rose 23%, topping analysts' estimates, as the giant bank continued to see improvement at its Main Street-related operations and the amount of money being set aside for loans that might go bad tumbled.
Shares rose 1.5% to $41 premarket amid broad market strength. As of Tuesday's close, the stock had fallen 12% the past year.
The profit "was the result of the good underlying performance of our businesses," said Chairman and Chief Executive Jamie Dimon, who noted that the investment banking's results were "solid" and its Main Street operations saw "strong" mortgage loan production.
Still, the investment-banking arm saw profit drop by one-third as revenue slid 29%. Profit soared to $907 million from $7 million a year earlier on sharply lower credit-loss provisions at its retail financial services segment as revenue declined 7%.
The first big bank reporting results, JPMorgan's bottom line had been solidly tied to its Wall Street-related operations recently, but growth shifted toward the giant bank's Main Street operations in the second quarter as the economy continued healing. Investment-banking results have turned sour in recent quarters amid a steep decline in trading activity.
The bank also has benefited recently from a sharp cut in its loan-loss reserves. Managed credit-loss provisions were $3.22 billion, down from $9.8 billion a year earlier and $3.36 billion in the prior quarter.
JPMorgan reported a third-quarter profit of $4.42 billion, or $1.01 a share, up from $3.59 billion, or 82 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue on a managed basis, which excludes the impact of credit-card securitizations and is on a tax-equivalent basis, dropped 15% to $24.34 billion.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had most recently forecast earnings of 90 cents on $24.64 billion in revenue.
