Wells Fargo has reported a net income of $4.894bn for the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, marking a rise of approximately 5.93% from $4.619bn in the same period last year.
However, total revenue for the bank declined to $20.15bn in Q1 2025, down from $20.86bn in Q1 2024, reflecting a decrease of about 3.39%.
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The bank’s average loans stood at $908.2m for the Q1 2025, which is a reduction of approximately 2% compared to $928.1m in the same period previous year.
Additionally, average deposits were reported at $1.33bn, a slight decrease of 0.2% from $1.34bn in Q1 2024.
In the consumer banking and lending segment, which provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and small businesses with annual sales typically up to $10m, revenue decreased by 2%.
This decline was attributed to increased deposit costs as customers shifted to higher-yielding deposit products, although this was partially offset by an increase in deposit balances.
The home lending sector remained stable, benefiting from higher mortgage banking fees, despite lower net interest income due to reduced loan balances.
The credit card division experienced a 2% increase in revenue, driven by higher loan balances, although this was countered by a decrease in card fees.
Conversely, the auto lending segment saw a significant decline of 21% due to lower loan balances and compression in loan spreads, while personal lending dropped by 10% as a result of decreased loan balances.
Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said: “We produced solid results with diluted earnings per share increasing 16% from a year ago reflecting fee-based revenue growth across many of our core businesses, continued expense discipline, improved credit results, and an 8% reduction in diluted common shares as we continued to return capital to shareholders.”
Wells Fargo’s noninterest expenses fell by 2%, attributed to reduced operating losses and the effects of efficiency initiatives.
This decrease was somewhat offset by increased expenses related to branch personnel and occupancy, reflecting ongoing investments in the bank’s branch network.
Last month, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) informed a federal court in Arizona that it is dismissing its December lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo regarding their handling of the Zelle payment service.
