-
Regional banks are doing their best to hold down expenses, compete for quality loans and generate more fee income, but until the Federal Reserve raises interest rates, their quarterly profits will remain sluggish, bankers and analysts say.
October 15 -
PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh reported higher third-quarter profit on an increase in fee income and loan growth.
October 15 - Georgia
SunTrust Banks in Atlanta reported lower fourth-quarter profits as legal costs related to mortgages offset an increase in loans and deposits.
January 16 -
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon had to defend the company against calls to break it up, doubts about its ability to command higher prices and greater efficiency, and investor disappointment with fourth-quarter results.
January 14
PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh reported flat earnings from a year earlier due to a slight drop in revenue and marginally higher costs.
The $345 billion-asset company reported fourth-quarter profit of $1.1 billion. Earnings of $1.84 per share beat the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters by 10 cents. Net revenue fell 3%, to $4 billion.
Net interest income fell 7%, to $2.1 billion. The net interest margin compressed by 9 basis points from the third quarter and 49 basis points from a year earlier, to 2.89%. The year-over-year compression was due to lower loan yields, smaller purchase accounting accretion, an increase in borrowed funds and the "the impact of the change in classification of certain commercial facility fees," PNC said in a press release Friday.
Loans increased 5% from a year earlier, to $204.8 billion. Commercial lending increased 10%.
Fee income managed to soften some of the pressure PNC felt in spread income. Noninterest income rose 2%, to $1.9 billion, with the largest gains taking place in service charges and other income, which includes securities gains.
Noninterest expenses rose 1%, to $2.5 billion, though personnel costs fell 3%, to $1.2 billion. PNC said in its release that it is committed to "disciplined expense management while investing in technology and business infrastructure."
