Tanking Profit at U.S. Banks Threatens Rally

The six largest U.S. lenders, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Wells Fargo & Co., may post an 11 percent drop in first-quarter profit, threatening a rally that has pushed bank stocks 19 percent higher this year, the gurus at Bloomberg tell us.
The banks will post $15.3 billion in net income when adjusted for one-time items, down from $17.3 billion in last year’s first quarter, according to a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Trading revenue at the biggest lenders is projected to fall 23 percent to $18.3 billion, according to Morgan Stanley analysts, who didn’t include their firm or Wells Fargo.

“You can’t expect bank stocks to go straight to the moon,” said Peter Kovalski, a money manager at Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC in Purchase, New York, which manages about $5 billion. “You have to expect fundamentals to catch up, and there are some headwinds facing the industry. There is a little too much optimism going into this quarter…..”

Want to see more? Check out http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-11/profit-drop-at-u-s-banks-imperils-rally.html