Tax

A plan by the largest U.S. bank to use part of its tax windfall to enter new markets (including Washington and Boston) could become a serious threat for banks of all sizes in those cities — or looked backed upon someday as a pricey overexpansion.

Consumer lending was a bright spot, but a series of one-time charges, capped by a writedown on its deferred tax assets, led to a nearly $1 billion loss.

The new tax law took a one-time bite out of fourth-quarter results, but higher rates strengthened yields and new business boosted fee income.

Flagstar Bancorp swung to a fourth-quarter loss as the company took an $80 million noncash charge to earnings because of the tax reform bill.

The Pittsburgh company reported a noisy fourth quarter that included expenses tied to its purchase of Yadkin Financial and a reduction in the value of its deferred tax assets.

The Florida company's fourth-quarter results included double-digit loan growth and a $328 million income tax benefit associated with recently passed tax reform.

The new tax law led to a nearly $16 million charge at the Pennsylvania bank, but it reported 7% loan growth and an 8% increase in fee income.

Look for banks to boost dividend payouts, expand into new markets, increase their tech spending and, eventually, ramp up their C&I lending. But don't expect much in the way of M&A.

The new tax law helped boost fourth-quarter results at SunTrust Banks in Atlanta, while the recent rate hikes led to gains in spread income.

Buying Capital Bank Financial helped boost revenue by 17% in the fourth quarter, but one-time charges related to recent tax cuts dragged down the Memphis company's profits.

The Los Angeles company said earnings fell 2% in the quarter as strong loan growth was offset by costs tied to its acquisition of CU Bancorp as well as a loss on the sale of a securities portfolio.

The Arkansas company's earnings fell 52% from a year earlier, reflecting a higher provision, a revaluation of its deferred tax asset and higher costs following a series of bank acquisitions.

BNY Mellon plowed some of its tax law savings into restructuring efforts.

Highlights at the North Carolina bank included deposit service charges, CRE lending and wider margins, which all offset one-time costs related to tax reform.

Merger- and tax-related charges took a bite out of fourth-quarter profits at the Cleveland company, but its CEO emphasized that a recent deal and tax reform are promising for growth.

Executives at U.S. Bancorp and Bank of America plan to use their tax savings to ramp up spending on new technology to stay competitive — but they sought to reassure investors that they would not abandon cost control.

Total loans rose 3% at the Minneapolis bank, but its net interest margin climbed 10 basis points. It also booked a one-time accounting gain of $910 million related to tax reform.

Write-down clears the decks for better times ahead; the agency’s acting head is looking to revamp strict rule that went into effect on Tuesday.

Tax reform and other regulatory factors could allow Citigroup — and other banks — to maintain high capital levels and strong rewards for shareholders.

Though business owners are more optimistic about the direction of the economy since the tax law was passed, it's doubtful their borrowing will increase meaningfully until they see more signs of more robust growth, bankers say.