IMGCAP(1)]
Wells Fargo & Co. today reported credit card loan charge-offs of $361 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, up 105.1% from $176 million during the same period last year. Card interest income totaled $609 million, up 9.3% from $557 million. Wells earned $601 million during the quarter from noninterest fees on credit and debit cards, up 7.1% from $561 million. Average consumer credit card receivables during the quarter was $19.9 billion, up 22.1% from $16.3 billion. Companywide, Wells reported net income of $1.64 billion for the third quarter, a 24.4% decrease from $2.17 billion during the same period a year ago. Total revenue for the quarter was $10.4 billion, a 5.1% increase from $9.9 billion. "We believe that our earnings momentum and balance sheet positions us well as we head towards completion of our announced merging of Wachovia, which is on track to close in the fourth quarter," Howard I. Atkins, Wells Fargo chief financial officer, said during a prerecorded earnings report this morning. The Federal Trade Commission last week cleared the way for quick approval of Wells Fargo's $11.7 billion merger with Wachovia Corp (CardLine, 10/10).
