Reality is starting to reflect in the second-quarter results for three of the largest U.S. banks: JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo. While earnings reports provided some reassurance for the banks and their investors, potential challenges remain.
All three banks reported growth in profits and revenues compared to the previous quarter and last year, meeting or exceeding Wall Street estimates. However, their stock prices fell in morning trading on Friday. Net interest income (NII) was a focal point, with Wells Fargo and JPMorgan reporting disappointing results in this area.
Citigroup, on the other hand, showed promising signs from its CEO Jane Fraser’s corporate overhaul. Lower expenses and higher-than-expected revenue and profits suggest the transformation efforts are yielding results.
Key takeaways from Friday include:
**Citigroup’s Transformation Progress**
Citigroup’s earnings reflected early benefits from its simplification strategy completed in early 2024, despite initial concerns from investors about layoffs and added expenses. Operating expenses decreased by 2% year-over-year, totaling $13.4 billion. Citigroup reported $20.1 billion in revenue for the second quarter (up 4% from last year) and $3.2 billion in net income ($1.52 per share), surpassing analysts’ expectations.
Citi’s stock initially rose but then fell by more than 3% in morning trading. While the results show progress, Moody’s Ratings indicated that challenges remain in market share growth and expense reduction in other areas. Citigroup is also addressing risk and compliance issues, having been fined $136 million recently for data management problems.
**Wells Fargo’s NII Decline**
Wells Fargo’s stock dropped over 7% after reporting a 9% decrease in NII, totaling $11.92 billion, below the $12.12 billion expected by analysts. Despite positive revenue and earnings per share (EPS) results, net income slightly declined to $4.91 billion ($1.33 per share). Moody’s Ratings noted ongoing challenges for NII and operating expenses, with the bank expecting NII to recover in the second half of 2024.
**Mixed Reactions to JPMorgan Results**
JPMorgan’s second-quarter results saw mixed market reactions. While it reported a 4% yearly increase in NII to $22.9 billion, it fell short of Wall Street estimates. The bank maintained its NII projections at $91 billion, disappointing some investors. Despite this, JPMorgan saw record quarterly profit of $18.1 billion ($6.12 per share), a 25% increase from the previous year. Revenue rose 22% year-over-year to $50.2 billion, driven by investment banking fees and gains from new Visa shares.
JPMorgan remains cautious about speculating on Federal Open Market Committee decisions, with rising provisions for loan losses and expenses also noted in the report.
Overall, while the three banks demonstrated growth and resilience, challenges, particularly in NII and operating expenses, remain a focal point for investors.