The fourth quarter was positive For Wells Fargo, even as rivals JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup struggled during the tough fiscal period. According to Forbes, the South Dakota-based bank reported a 20.5 percent gain Tuesday while JPMorgan fell 23 percent and Citigroup booked a decline of 11 percent from just a year ago.
That’s a net income of $4.1 billion, or 73 cents per share on $20.6 billion, Wells Fargo said. The bank attributed much of its growth not to loans, but to increasing balances that offset non-strategic and liquidating accounts. Chief Executive John Stumpf also pointed to the integration of Wachovia bank, which it acquired in 2008 during the financial crisis.
Stumpf said the bank is looking forward to improving efficiency in 2012 and “returning even more capital to our shareholders.”
Wells Fargo shares were up one percent before the market opened Tuesday, while Citigroup tanked 3.3 percent and JPMorgan Chase fell 0.6 percent. Bank of America, which has not yet posted its fourth quarter earnings report, managed a gain of 0.8 percent.
Forbes noted that Wells Fargo must still undergo a Federal Reserve review of its capital plan. The Fed began to require the review after 2008 in order to test for stress and adequate preparedness for situations like a repeat of the financial crisis or the ongoing breakdown in Europe.
