Financial giant JPMorgan Chase (JPM) kicked off bank earnings on Friday with its first-quarter 2019 results.
Net income jumped 5% to a record $9.2 billion, while net revenue rose 5% to $29.9 billion. Net interest income rose 8% to $14.6 billion, while noninterest income inched 1% up to $15.3 billion.
Earnings soared 12% higher at $2.65 per share from a year ago.
“In Consumer & Community Banking, client investment assets topped $300 billion, with record new money driven by our physical and digital channels. Consumer spending remains robust with credit card sales and merchant processing volume up double digits,” said CEO Jamie Dimon.
In its Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB) segment, JPMorgan Chase saw net revenue slip 6% to $9.8 billion. Net income fell 18% to $3.3 billion, but Banking revenue grew 8% to $3.2 billion.
For the whole of JPMorgan Chase, the first-quarter noninterest expense spiked 2% to $16.4 billion, driven by investments in the business, including technology, marketing, real estate and front office hires, as well as higher auto lease depreciation, partially offset by the absence of the prior-year FDIC surcharge and lower performance-based compensation. The provision for credit losses was $1.5 billion, up by $330 million from the prior year. The rise was driven by the Wholesale portfolio, reflecting a net reserve build of $135 million on select Commercial & Industrial client downgrades.
In the quarter, JPMorgan reported a Basel-III fully phased-in Common equity Tier-1 capital of $186 billion and a standardized Common equity Tier-1 ratio of 12.1%. In the same period, JPM distributed $7.4 billion to shareholders, including $4.7 billion in net repurchases.
For the full year 2019, JPMorgan expects firmwide net interest income to be more than $58 billion, but dependent on market conditions. Adjusted expenses for the year are touted to be less than $66 billion, and net charge-offs are estimated to be below $5.5 billion for the year.