Wells Fargo posted a 22 percent increase in first-quarter profit on Friday as the bank, which is the nation's largest home lender, continued to notch record gains even while its mortgage machine slowed.
The bank, which benefited from recent effort to curb expenses, reported earnings of $5.2 billion, or 92 cents a share, compared with $4.25 billion, or 75 cents a share, in the period a year earlier. The results outpaced estimates of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, who had forecast earnings of 88 cents a share.
For Wells, which is based in San Francisco, it was the 13th consecutive rise in quarterly earnings and the eighth consecutive record.
“Wells Fargo delivered outstanding first-quarter 2013 results for our shareholders,†the bank's chief executive, John G. Stumpf, said in a statement.
In a downside for the bank, however, its revenue slipped slightly, to $21.3 billion, compared with $21.6 billion in the period a year earlier.
And the bank's mortgage business, riding years of record gains, finally showed it was unable to sustain the gains.
The bank's mortgage banking income, for example, slipped 3 percent. And while handling $109 billion in mortgage originations might be a feat for some banks, it represented a 16 percent drop for Wells Fargo.
The results could present problems for Wells Fargo, whose fortunes rise and fall with the mortgage market. The bank now creates roughly a third of all mortgages in the country.
The results could also signal a flattening out of the broader mortgage market. As the Federal Reserve cut interest rates in recent years, it prompted millions of borrowers to refinance their home loans to reduce costs.
Now, that pipeline of borrowers could dry up, unless interest rates once again drop significantly or the housing market makes a fuller recovery. Refinancing accounted for 65 percent of Wells Fargo's mortgage origination in the first quarter, down from 76 percent in the period a year earlier.
Still, the bank's lending business showed some signs of strength. In the first quarter, that business helped lead the growth, as the banks overall loan portfolio grew 4 percent. And profit in the community banking division, which includes Wells Fargo's retail branches and mortgage business, climbed 24 percent, to $2.9 billion.
“Loans and deposits demonstrated continued growth in a challenging economic environment,†Mr. Stumpf said.
But the strong returns were spread across the bank. The unit that caters to corporations showed improvement, with profits rising 9 percent. The bank also reported a 14 percent profit gain in its wealth management business.
It was a welcome sign for the banking industry.
Wells Fargo, along with JPMorgan Chase, kicked off bank earnings season. Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street giants will report next week.
