JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported fourth-quarter 2010 net income of $4.8 billion, an increase of 47% compared with $3.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2009. Earnings per share were $1.12, compared with $0.74 for the fourth quarter of 2009. Full-year 2010 net income was $17.4 billion, an increase of 48% compared with $11.7 billion for the prior year. Earnings per share were $3.96, compared with $2.26 for 2009.
Jamie Dimon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Solid performance in the quarter and for the year reflected good results across most of our businesses, which benefited from strong client relationships and continued investments for growth. Credit trends in our credit card and wholesale businesses continued to improve. In our mortgage business, while charge-offs and delinquencies have improved, credit costs still remain at abnormally high levels and continue to be a significant drag on our returns.”
Regarding the Firm’s balance sheet, Dimon said: “We continued to strengthen our fortress balance sheet, ending the year with a strong Tier 1 Common ratio of 9.8%. By 2019, banks will be expected to maintain a Tier 1 Common ratio of 7% under Basel III – we estimate that our ratio is approximately 7% this quarter. Our total firmwide credit reserves declined to $33.0 billion, resulting in a firmwide coverage ratio of 4.5% of total loans1. We are confident that we have the earnings power to generate substantial capital, well beyond what we will need to prudently grow our business.”
Dimon further remarked: “I am proud of what our employees have done for our clients and our communities. Throughout 2010, we supported the economic recovery while also preparing for the future. We provided credit to and raised capital for our clients of more than $1.4 trillion during the year. These efforts included more than $10 billion of credit provided to over 250,000 small businesses in the U.S. in support of our communities, an increase of more than 50% over 2009. We also made substantial investments in the future of our businesses this year, opening branches and offices, and adding bankers around the world, including hiring more than 8,000 people in the U.S. alone. We remain committed to helping homeowners and preventing foreclosures. Since the beginning of 2009, we have offered 1,038,000 trial modifications to struggling homeowners. Of the 285,000 modifications we completed, more than 50% were modified under Chase programs, and the remainder were offered under government-sponsored or agency programs.”
Dimon concluded: “Through the outstanding efforts of our 239,000 employees around the world, our Firm has come through the worst economic storm in recent history stronger than we have ever been. We never stopped innovating and investing in the products that support and serve our clients and the communities where we do business. Although we continue to face challenges, there are signs of stability and growth returning to both the global capital markets and the U.S. economy. We are well positioned with the capital strength necessary to make the right investments to take advantage of these opportunities for the benefit of our shareholders.”
D.C.