JPMorgan Chase & Co., the third-largest U.S. bank, on Wednesday said first-quarter profit surged, beating expectations with help from growth in investment banking, credit cards and consumer banking.
Net income for the New York-based bank rose to $3.1 billion, or 86 cents a share, from $2.3 billion, or 63 cents, in the year-earlier period.
Analysts, on average, expected JPMorgan to report earnings of 83 cents a share in the quarter, excluding items, on revenue of $15.2 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.
Under James Dimon, who joined JPMorgan with the 2004 acquisition of his Bank One and was named chief executive on December 31, the bank has pump up its trading and investment banking. JPMorgan is also bulking up its retail banking arm, as seen in the recent agreement to buy 328 bank branches from Bank of New York Co.
JPMorgan shares, which closed Tuesday trade at $42.60, have risen 24 percent in the past 12 months and 7.3 percent this year, outperforming its peers as investors bet the big bank is finally turning the corner after years of laggard performance.