NEW YORK: Capital One Financial Corp, the biggest US credit card lender, reported a first quarter profit that missed Wall Street’s estimate and set aside more cash to cover soured loans.
Provision for credit losses surged 72% from 12 months earlier to US$4.07bil, the Virginia-based bank said in a statement, almost a year after completing its acquisition of rival Discover Financial Services.
Adjusted earnings per share totalled US$4.42, missing the US$4.56 average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
Shares of Capital One were trading at US$198.23, down 16% this year through the close of regular trading, the worst performance in the KBW Bank Index.
The war on Iran has driven up gas prices, weighing on consumer budgets. Chime Financial Inc disclosed this month that its customers spent 25% more on fuel in March compared with the previous month.
The conflict in the Middle East “presents a significant cloud on the horizon”, Capital One chief executive officer Rich Fairbank said during a conference call with analysts. — Bloomberg
