A Regions Bank sign decorates the facade of the Tallen Building in this file photo.Regions Financial Corp. on Tuesday reported a surprise profit for the first quarter, reversing a year-ago loss, reflecting a much smaller amount reserved to cover loan defaults and a big drop in loans written off as uncollectible.
The Birmingham, Ala.-based bank, the parent company of Regions Bank, posted net income for common shareholders of $17 million, or a penny per share, for the three months ended March 31. In the same time a year ago, Regions reported a loss of $255 million, or 21 cents per share.
Analysts were expecting a loss of 10 cents per share, according to data provided by FactSet.
Net interest income, or money earned from deposits and loans, rose 4 percent to $863 million, from $831 million last year. Total deposits slipped to $96.4 billion, from $98.3 billion last year. Total loans dropped 8 percent to $81.4 million at March 31, from $88.2 million a year ago.
Noninterest income, or earnings from fees, charges and its Morgan Keegan brokerage operations, also rose 4 percent to $843 million, from $812 million last year.