BB&T 4th-quarter earnings fall 37 percent on higher loss provision, nonperforming assets

BB&T 4Q earnings fall 37 percent on loss provision

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Regional bank BB&T Corp. said Friday its fourth-quarter earnings fell 37 percent as higher costs and a sharp increase in its provision for credit losses offset a jump in revenue.

The bank earned $194 million, or 27 cents per share, in the quarter compared with $307 million, or 51 cents per share, in the same quarter a year earlier.

The bank’s provision for credit losses rose to $725 million from $528 million in the year-ago period. BB&T said its nonperforming assets rose to 2.65 percent of total assets at the end of the fourth quarter from 2.48 percent in the third quarter.

The higher provision and nonperforming assets were due in part to problem home loans, especially in Atlanta, Florida, Washington, D.C., and parts of the coastal areas of the Carolinas.

Results nevertheless beat analysts’ profit estimate of 21 cents per share for the quarter, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

BB&T’s net interest income from loans rose 24 percent to $1.3 billion, while noninterest income from bank fees and other sources went up 20 percent to $970 million.

But noninterest income expenses also rose, by 34 percent to $1.36 billion.

BB&T’s revenue from net interest and noninterest income came to $2.27 billion, exceeding the $2.23 billion expected by analysts.

For the year, BB&T earned $877 million, or $1.15 per share, compared with $1.5 billion, or $2.71 per share, in 2008.

The bank said that as of Dec. 31 it had $165.8 billion in assets and operates nearly 1,860 offices in 12 states and Washington, D.C.

Shares of BB&T, based in Winston-Salem, N.C., fell 93 cents, or 3.2 percent, to close at $28.15.