Yahoo Finance Wells Fargo beats expectation, new CEO says he's 'deeply committed' to restoring trust
Wells Fargo (WFC), now the third-largest US bank by assets, reported third-quarter earnings that beat expectations.
The bank booked earnings of $1.03 per share on revenue of $22.3 billion, topping analysts’ expectations of $1.01 per share on revenue of $22.2 billion.
The bank has recently been rocked by a scandal involving employees at the retail bank opening up approximately 2 million fraudulent accounts to meet sales targets. More than 5,000 employees were subsequently fired.
On Wednesday, Wells Fargo announced that John Stumpf, a 35-year veteran at the bank, would retire as chairman and CEO, effective immediately. The sudden retirement came just two weeks after Stumpf had to testify on Capitol Hill over the issue at the retail bank. Stumpf’s forfeited unvested equity awards are valued at approximately $41 million, the earnings release noted.
Tim Sloan, the president and COO, was made CEO.
“I am deeply committed to restoring the trust of all of our stakeholders, including our customers, shareholders, and community partners. We know that it will take time and a lot of hard work to earn back our reputation, but I am confident because of the incredible caliber of our team members. We will work tirelessly to build a stronger and better Wells Fargo for generations to come,” Sloan said in the earnings release.
In the earnings presentation, the bank provided an overview of an independent review into the deposit and credit card accounts.
The bank also included information on changes its making in wake of the account scandal.
A conference call will be held at 10 a.m. EST.
Elsewhere, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Citigroup (C) also posted modest earnings beats for the third quarter.
