Money Center Banks
($JPM) U.S. Bank Failures Hit 16 As Another One Goes Down
U.S. regulators on Friday shuttered 1st American State Bank of Minnesota , in Hancock, pushing up U.S. bank failures to 16 so far in 2010. This compares to total number of bank failures of 140 in 2009, 25 in 2008 and only 3 in 2007. While we expect economic recovery to gain momentum...
8Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BK) BNY Mellon Corporation Coverage Initiated at Neutral
Recently, we initiated coverage on BNY Mellon Corp. (BK) with a Neutral recommendation. BNY Mellon’s fourth-quarter earnings of 59 cents per share came in above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 52 cents. The better-than-expected results were aided mainly by a lower provision...
5Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BK) Bank of New York Mellon Mellon Acquires PNC Financial Services Group Unit
Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BK) announced on Tuesday that it is in the process of buying the global investment servicing unit of PNC Financial Services Group Inc. (PNC) for $2.31 billion. On completion, the deal will help BNY Mellon become the second-largest provider of fund...
3Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(JPM) U.S. Banks Stock Update – February 2010 – Industry Outlook
After enduring extraordinary shocks in 2008, the U.S. banks entered an exceptional state of turmoil in 2009. Starting as a credit issue in the subprime segment of the mortgage market, the sticky situation infected almost the entire financial services industry, and all corners...
3Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BK) Bank of New York Mellon Division Gets License in China
BNY Mellon, a division of Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BK), said on Monday that it has obtained a license from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) to invest in yuan-denominated Chinese securities as a Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor. This approval follows...
2Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(WFC) Federal Reserve Meeting Results in Focus for Wednesday
The Federal Reserve is meeting today and tomorrow, and tomorrow afternoon they will announce if they are going to change the Fed funds rate from its current range of 0 to 25 basis points. As the graphs below (from http://www.clevelandfed.org/research/data/fedfunds/index.cfm)...
26Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(JPM) JPMorgan Chase – Bear of the Day
We are downgrading our rating on JPMorgan Chase (JPM) shares to Underperform. Fourth quarter earnings were well ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, aided by better-than-expected results at its Investment Bank segment. However, persistent high levels of consumer credit costs...
25Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(STI) SunTrust Reports Narrower Losses
SunTrust Bank Inc.’s (STI) fourth quarter operating loss of 64 cents per share was lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 75 cents. Last year, the company reported a loss of $1.07 per share. Net loss was $316.4 million versus $374.9 million last year. Results...
23Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(KEY) KeyCorp Beats Expectations – Loss Shrinks
KeyCorp’s (KEY) fourth quarter loss from continuing operations of 30 cents per share was lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 39 cents. This also compares favorably to a net loss from continuing operations of $1.07 cents in the prior-year quarter. Results were...
21Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) U. S. Initial Jobless Claims Rise
The data on the Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance this morning was disappointing. Initial jobless claims rose by 36,000 to 482,000. This caused the 4-week average to rise by 7,000 to 448,250. It was the first increase in the 4-week average since August 15th, when it stood...
21Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BK) The Bank of New York Mellon Beats Expectations
The Bank of New York Mellon Corp.’s (BK) fourth-quarter earnings of 59 cents per share came in above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 52 cents. The company saw an increase in assets under custody and administration during the quarter. On Non-GAAP basis, total revenues for the...
20Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Housing Permits Rise – Housing Starts Fall
We got a very mixed picture on the housing front this morning. Housing Starts were down but Building Permits were up, and while permits are a leading indicator of starts, they usually move in the same direction. It was not simply a case of the very volatile apartment and condo...
20Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Bank of America’s Earnings Disappoint Due To TARP Payback
Bank of America Corporation’s (BAC) fourth quarter 2009 loss came in at 60 cents per share, a nickel worse than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 55 cents. This compares unfavorably with the loss of 48 cents in the prior-year quarter. Results for the quarter included...
20Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(WFC) Wells Fargo & Company Beats Consensus Estimates
Wells Fargo & Co.’s (WFC) fourth quarter 2009 net income applicable to common stock came in at $394 million or 8 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $3.02 billion or 84 cents in the prior-year quarter. Results were soundly ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate...
20Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(C) Citigroup’s Earnings Match Consensus Estimates
Citigroup (C) matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its fiscal fourth quarter reported this morning at a loss of 33 cents per share. The company suffered an incredibly bad fourth quarter of 2008, so year-over-year comparables are very favorable. So favorable, in fact, they...
19Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Small Business Lending Shrinks $1Billion
According to a report released by the Treasury late last Friday, major banks have cut small business lending by $1 billion in November. This marks the seventh straight month of decline in small business lending. The banks’ total lending dropped 4.6% in that seven-month...
19Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Bank of America to Cut 50 Jobs in Bellevue
As part of its nationwide job cuts initiative announced at the end of 2008, Bank of America Corporation (BAC) will retrench 50 employees in Bellevue. According to a notice sent out by the Washington Employment Security Department on Friday, BofA will start the retrenchment effective...
18Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(JPM) JPMorgan Chase & Company’s Earnings Beat on Surging Profits
JPMorgan Chase & Company’s (JPM) 4th quarter earnings came in at 74 cents per share, substantially ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 61 cents. This also compares favorably with earnings of 6 cents in the prior-year quarter. Better-than-expected results of JPMorgan...
15Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(C) Will Citigroup Cap Cash Bonuses?
According to a report from the Financial Times today [our earlier posting of this story did not cite FT], Citigroup Inc. (C) may cap cash bonuses for 2009 at below $100,000. The 2009 bonus pool at the company is expected to be similar to the 2008 level, which was low compared...
15Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(JPM) JPMorgan Chase & Company Adds 24 Mortgage Centers
In an effort to extend its helping hand toward struggling homeowners who have to make their mortgage payments, JPMorgan Chase & Company (JPM) said on Monday that it is almost doubling its nationwide network by adding 24 more Chase Homeownership Centers, including one in Dallas. The...
14Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(C) Wall Street Brings It On Itself
We seem to have come a long way from this time last year, when Wall Street was on its death bed in desperate need of a bailout. Storied brokerage houses such as Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch had disappeared altogether, while many other household-name titans...
14Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(WFC) Wells Fargo Reorders Fund Offering
In an effort to re-align its product portfolio, on Wednesday, Wells Fargo & Co.’s (WFC) investment manager division, Wells Fargo Funds Management, LLC and its affiliate Evergreen Investment Management Company, LLC announced their intention to reduce the size of their mutual...
14Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Bank of America Reshuffles Top Management
In an effort to stabilize its executive team after experiencing a slump caused by the recession, Bank of America Corp.’s (BAC) new CEO Brian Moynihan announced a management shake-up on Tuesday, less than two weeks after succeeding former CEO Kenneth Lewis. BofA last made senior...
13Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(C) Citigroup Reshuffles Senior Management
Citigroup Inc. (C) has reshuffled its senior management team. Citi has announced yesterday that Teresa A. “Terri” Dial will step down as the Chief Executive Officer of Consumer Banking in North America for personal reasons, and will become a senior advisor. Her stepping...
12Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Obama Mulls TARP Tax on Banks
The Obama Administration is considering imposing a tax on banks to recover the losses incurred by the government on the bailout money provided to financial firms as part of its $700 billion bailout program to rescue the financial system. The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)...
12Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued($BAC) New York Attorney General Andrew Seeks TARPer’s Bonus Data
On Monday, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo asked eight of the nation’s largest banks that received significant federal aid under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to provide information on the amount of 2009 bonus packages and their structure. Cuomo also asked...
12Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Bank of America to Pay 2007 Level Bonuses
With an attempt to retain key employees following its takeover of Merrill Lynch & Co., Bank of America Corp. (BAC) is likely to pay bonuses to its investment bankers close to what they received in 2007. BofA is expected to pay about 25% of 2009 bonuses in cash and the rest...
10Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(STI) SunTrust Banks Impliments Salary Freeze
In compliance with the pay restrictions imposed on the company for participating in the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), SunTrust Banks Inc. (STI) said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday that it has put in effect a salary freeze for all of its senior executives except one. Atlanta-based...
7Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(BAC) Bank of America CEO: Expect Sluggish Revival
Bank of America Corporation’s (BAC) new chief executive officer (CEO), Brian T. Moynihan, said on Monday that he anticipates a sluggish and prolonged recovery of the U.S economy. He also expects a high unemployment level in the near term. According to the CEO, de-consolidating...
5Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(C) Citigroup to Restructure Operations and Sell LavaFX to FXall
Citigroup to Sell LavaFX to FXall In a bid to restructure its operations, on Monday, Citigroup Inc. (C) decided to discharge its foreign exchange trading platform LavaFX to FXall, another rival electronic trading platform for foreign exchange. Though the terms of the deal remain...
5Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued