PNC Financial Services Group Earnings: Streak of Four Straight Profit Declines Snapped

S&P 500 (NYSE:SPY) component PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) reported its results for the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group offers corporate and institutional banking, retail banking, asset management, residential mortgage banking, and global investment services.

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PNC Financial Services Group Earnings Cheat Sheet

Results: Net income for the banks-major regional rose to $925 million ($1.64 per share) vs. $830 million ($1.55 per share) in the same quarter a year earlier. This marks a rise of 11.4% from the year-earlier quarter.

Revenue: Rose 15.3% to $4.09 billion from the year-earlier quarter.

Actual vs. Wall St. Expectations: PNC Financial Services Group beat the mean analyst estimate of $1.60 per share. It beat the average revenue estimate of $3.71 billion.

Quoting Management: “PNC reported excellent results for the third quarter with 2012 shaping up to be another good year,” said James E. Rohr, chairman and chief executive officer. “On the strength of our products, brand and execution we continued to increase the number of customers we serve resulting in revenue and loan growth. We also remained focused on controlling costs while investing for the future and managing risk and capital. As a result, PNC is well positioned to continue to create shareholder value.”

Key Stats:

After reporting year-over-year profit decreases for four quarters in a row, the company reported a profit increase last quarter. In the second quarter, net income fell 39.5% from the year earlier, while the figure fell 3.8% in the first quarter, 42.2% in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year and 24.6% in the third quarter of the last fiscal year.

The company has now topped analyst estimates for the last three quarters. It beat the mark by 16 cents in the second quarter and by 22 cents in the first quarter.

Looking Forward: Analysts appear increasingly optimistic about the company’s results for the next quarter. The average estimate for the fourth quarter has moved up from $1.63 a share to $1.64 over the last thirty days. For the fiscal year, the average estimate has moved down from $6.29 a share to $5.74 over the last sixty days.

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(Company fundamentals provided by Xignite Financials. Earnings estimates provided by Zacks)

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