Wells Fargo, on the other hand, reported first-quarter revenue that missed analysts’ estimates as the lender’s embattled community bank weighed on results. The firm has had trouble attracting new retail-bank customers while grappling with a bogus account scandal and as fewer customers take out loans.
Wells Fargo was the worst performer in the S&P 500 Financials Index of 65 companies, declining 2.6 percent at 12:44 p.m. in New York. Citigroup and JPMorgan both slipped less than 1 percent.
PNC Financial Services Group Inc., the nation’s second-largest regional bank, climbed 0.3 percent after posting results that beat analysts’ estimates and raising a forecast for revenue growth in 2017. Interest income, its main source of revenue, climbed about 3 percent from the fourth quarter -- but most of the improvement came from investment securities, rather than loans. The Pittsburgh-based bank projected loans will grow this year by mid-single digits, with total revenue climbing faster.
Commercial lending has also slowed this quarter in much of the industry, with analysts blaming the softness on uncertainty about corporate tax rates and Trump’s ability to push through his legislative agenda, as well as less demand from companies that have access to capital markets. Regulations also may be discouraging banks from making riskier loans.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.