BANK ONE REPORTS THIRD QUARTER NET INCOME OF $0.79 PER SHARE, UP 12.9% FROM $0.70
- STRONG GROWTH IN RETAIL
- SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN COMMERCIAL CREDIT QUALITY
- CAPITAL MARKETS REVENUES UP 52%
- ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT REACHED RECORD LEVEL OF $176 BILLION
- ZURICH LIFE ACQUISITION CLOSES
CHICAGO, October 21, 2003 - Bank One Corporation (NYSE: ONE) today announced 2003 third quarter net income of $883 million, or $0.79 per diluted share, compared to $823 million, or $0.70 per diluted share.
"We experienced momentum in many of our businesses, as evidenced by the continued growth in new accounts, deposits, and loan production in Retail, balance and charge volume growth in Card, and positive net flows in Investment Management," said James Dimon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
"We are extremely pleased with the overall performance in corporate banking. Even though balances were down from last quarter, mostly due to lower utilization that was common throughout the industry, investment grade commitments were up. The dramatic improvement in credit performance and the continued strength in non-lending revenue have driven solid returns in this business," Dimon said.
"Middle market loan balances declined as a result of lower utilization and our tightened credit standards. While credit remains a priority, we are focused on re-igniting growth in the business. We expect the changes we announced recently to address this issue," Dimon said.
"We are already seeing positive results from the Zurich Life acquisition, which was completed earlier than anticipated. The Zurich addition and the planned fourth quarter purchase of Security Capital will fill important product gaps and complement our existing asset management capabilities. We also expect to close the sale of the corporate trust business in the fourth quarter."
Highlights in the third quarter include the following:
- Significant items:
- Third quarter results included several significant items that resulted in a minimal net impact to the Company's earnings.
($ millions) Pretax After-tax
Net gain on Corporate investment activity $37 $24
Commercial Banking allowance release 150 95
Losses related to termination of debt (162) (103)
Net impact to earnings $25 $16
- Retail experienced another successful quarter with continued growth in net transaction accounts, core deposits, and home equity loan production and balances. Net income was $392 million, up $31 million, or 9%.
- Retail grew net transaction accounts by nearly 150 thousand, its highest quarterly growth in at least several years. This was driven by improvements in both the account acquisition and attrition rates. During the last 12 months, checking accounts have increased 362 thousand.
- Average core deposits increased $5.8 billion, or 9%, to $70 billion from the prior year.
- Home equity loan production was $4.7 billion, up 24% from the prior year. This growth led to a 37% increase in average home equity balances to $24.5 billion.
- Over the past 12 months, branch hours were expanded on average 10 hours per week, 39 new banking centers were opened, 228 ATMs were added to the network, and the salesforce was increased, adding 548 relationship bankers and 74 investment sales representatives.
- Investment sales volume increased 18% from the prior year, driven by strong annuity and mutual fund sales.
- Commercial Banking's performance continued to be driven by improvements in credit quality and strong capital markets revenues. Net income was $361 million, up $182 million.
- Corporate banking end-of-period loan balances were down $3.8 billion, or 12%, partially due to lower utilization. Offsetting this decline was dramatic credit quality improvement and significant growth in non-lending revenues, primarily capital markets, which increased 52% to $234 million. The net charge-off ratio declined to 0.81%, from 2.03%, and nonperforming loans decreased 48% to $526 million. As a result of this improvement, $150 million of corporate banking loan loss reserves were released.
- Middle market end-of-period loan balances declined $4.7 billion, or 15%, as a result of lower utilization and tightened credit. Credit showed significant improvement as net charge-offs totaled $43 million, a 44% decline, and the charge-off ratio was 0.62%, as compared to 0.96%. Nonperforming loans declined 16% to $861 million.
- Card Services' net income was $285 million, down 4% from the prior year, as margin compression and a higher provision for credit losses offset the benefits of higher loan and charge volumes. Compared to the prior quarter, net income increased $6 million, or 2%, as margin improvements and higher charge volumes were partially offset by a higher provision for credit losses. Margin as a percentage of average outstandings increased 40 basis points over the prior quarter to 8.57%, reversing the downward trend of the previous quarters. Provision increased as a result of higher net charge-offs and a modest increase in reserves.
- Managed average loan balances increased $6.1 billion, or 9%, over the prior year and modestly over the prior quarter. Charge volume increased $3.3 billion, or 8%, over the prior year, and $2.3 billion, or 6%, over the prior quarter.
- The focus on developing alliances continued as new co-brand and affinity partnerships were formed, including Trump Hotel and Casino Resorts and FedEx, and existing alliances were renewed, including AARP and Bell South.
- Continuing to solidify its position as the leading co-brand issuer, the Company partnered with Starbucks to launch the Starbucks Card Duetto Visa, which blends credit card functionality with the re-loadable Starbucks Card.
- Net accounts opened totaled 895 thousand.
- Credit ratios remained strong despite the increase of the managed net charge-off rate to 5.30%, from the lower rate of 5.00% in the prior year. Losses were up slightly from the previous quarter, due primarily to lower recoveries. The 30-day managed delinquency ratio decreased to 3.98% from 4.05%.
- Investment Management continued to achieve positive net flows of client assets. Net income was $91 million, a 15% increase over the prior year and a 20% increase over the prior quarter.
- On September 3, the Company completed the acquisition of Zurich Life. The acquisition was positively received by the rating agencies. Moody's upgraded the ratings from A3 to A2 for all three of the Zurich underwriting entities, S&P affirmed the A+ ratings, and A.M. Best maintained the A ratings with developing implications.
- Total assets under management were a record $175.5 billion, an 18% increase. Excluding the impact of the Zurich acquisition, net inflows of long-term assets were $6.1 billion in the current quarter and $12.2 billion during the last four quarters.
- The Company announced an agreement to purchase Security Capital Research & Management Incorporated, a recognized expert in developing and providing real estate investment products, with approximately $3.5 billion in assets under management. The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter.
- On September 3, the New York Attorney General simultaneously filed and settled a complaint against a hedge fund alleging that the hedge fund had engaged in improper trading practices with certain mutual funds, including the One Group Funds. The Company is cooperating fully with the Attorney General, the Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulators in connection with inquiries into these practices, and is reviewing its mutual fund practices. To date, the Company has found no systemic problems. The Company continues to work towards assessing any financial impact to One Group investors from such practices and will make full restitution to One Group investors harmed as a result of improper conduct by any Bank One employee.
LINE OF BUSINESS DISCUSSION
All comparisons are to the applicable period in the prior year unless otherwise specified.
Reported Net Income (Loss) by Line of Business
% change
($ millions) 3Q03 2Q03 3Q02 2Q03 3Q02
Retail $392 $373 $361 5% 9%
Commercial Banking 361 249 179 45 NM
Card Services 285 279 298 2 (4)
Investment Management(1) 91 76 79 20 15
Corporate(1) (246) (121) (94) NM NM
Total Corporation $883 $856 $823 3% 7%
(1) For all periods presented, Corporate includes the discontinued corporate trust business transferred during the third quarter from the Investment Management group. See Corporate discussion for more details.
RETAIL
Retail net income was $392 million, up $31 million, or 9%, from the prior year, and $19 million, or 5%, from the prior quarter.
Total revenue increased $92 million, or 6%, to $1.6 billion. Net interest income was $1.1 billion, up $35 million, or 3%, primarily from growth in home equity loans and core deposits, partially offset by spread compression and lower time deposits.
Noninterest income was $493 million, up $57 million, or 13%, driven by higher mortgage-related revenue, deposit service charges, and investment sales. Partially offsetting these increases were the impact of the Visa debit card interchange rate settlement and the elimination of the teller service and online bill-pay fees.
Noninterest expense was $839 million, up 3%, or $23 million, primarily due to increased marketing spend and volume-based commissions, as well as branch expansion costs, partially offset by improved efficiencies in operating expenses. Even with continued investment in Retail, noninterest expenses were essentially flat over the prior quarter.
The provision for credit losses was $139 million, up 22%, or $25 million, driven primarily by continued growth in the loan portfolios. As a percentage of average loans, net charge-offs were 1.05%, up from 0.95%, primarily due to the sale of a small non-relationship portfolio.
The allowance for credit losses of $683 million represented 1.29% of period-end loans. Nonperforming assets were $690 million, down 9% from the prior year and 12% from the prior quarter, driven by a decrease in other real estate owned.
COMMERCIAL BANKING
Commercial Banking net income increased $182 million to $361 million. Excluding the $95 million after-tax reduction in the allowance for credit losses, net income was $266 million, up 49% from $179 million, driven by substantially improved credit quality and significant growth in capital markets. These improvements were partially offset by declining loan volumes and deposit margin compression.
Net interest income decreased 5% to $576 million, reflecting a 13% reduction in average loan volume and compression in deposit spreads in the low interest rate environment. These decreases were partially offset by improvement in loan spreads, particularly in corporate banking. Loan balances continued to decline, reflecting decreased demand for financing. Despite declines in corporate banking loan balances, investment grade commitments increased in the current quarter. Middle market loan demand, however, lagged due to lower utilization and tightened credit standards.
Noninterest income was $461 million, which included the $51 million negative impact of the credit derivatives hedge portfolio and the offsetting positive impact of $51 million from the sale of loans and securities primarily acquired in satisfaction of debt. Noninterest income of $437 million in the prior year included a $101 million positive impact from the credit derivatives hedge portfolio and a $23 million loss on the sale of loans and securities acquired in satisfaction of debt. Excluding these items, the dramatic improvement year-over-year was $102 million, or 28%, driven by strong capital markets results, including greater derivatives trading revenue and higher asset-backed, syndication and fixed income origination fees.
Continued expense management efforts held noninterest expense relatively flat at $582 million despite increased expenses related to stock options and employee benefits.
Credit quality continued to improve, as indicated by a $138 million, or 58%, decline in net charge-offs. Compared to the prior quarter, net charge-offs declined $6 million, or 6%, as gross charge-offs in corporate banking improved and middle market recoveries were lower than in the prior quarter.
Corporate Banking Middle Market
($ millions) 3Q03 2Q03 3Q02 3Q03 2Q03 3Q02
Net charge-offs $56 $63 $160 $43 $42 $77
Net charge-off ratio 0.81% 0.86% 2.03% 0.62% 0.58% 0.96%
Nonperforming loans $526 $705 $1,010 $861 $988 $1,030
The reduced size of the loan portfolio and the continued improvement in credit quality led to a $150 million reduction in the allowance for loan losses. Nonperforming loans declined 32% to $1.4 billion, reflecting declines of 48% in corporate banking and 16% in middle market banking. Compared to the prior quarter, nonperforming loans decreased 25% in corporate banking and 13% in middle market banking.
CARD SERVICES
Reported Basis
Card Services net income was $285 million, down 4% from the prior year, as continued margin compression and the higher provision for credit losses offset the benefit of higher loan volume. Net income increased $6 million, or 2%, from the prior quarter as margin improvements were partially offset by the higher provision for credit losses.
Total revenue increased 4% to $1.3 billion. Net interest income increased 15% to $414 million, reflecting higher owned loan balances, partially offset by modest margin compression. Average owned loan balances were $16.4 billion, an increase of $5.9 billion, or 56%, due to a lower percentage of seller's interest and accrued interest receivable to managed loans in the current period. End-of-period owned loans increased $2.3 billion, or 19%, from the prior year. Noninterest income remained relatively flat at $888 million, primarily driven by higher securitized and owned loans offset by lower margin earned on securitized loans.
Compared to the prior quarter, total revenue increased $102 million, or 9%, as margin stabilized. Net interest income increased $82 million, or 25%, reflecting higher owned loan balances and higher spread. Noninterest income increased 2%, primarily resulting from higher income earned on securitized loans partially offset by lower securitization activity and a modest gain from portfolio sales in the prior quarter.
Paymentech Inc., the Company's merchant card processor, reported an increase in total revenue of 18% to $148 million, resulting from a 33% increase in total transactions and a 28% increase in bank card volume, driven primarily by the purchase of the Scotia Bank merchant acquirer business in the fourth quarter 2002.
Noninterest expense was $593 million, a decline of 4%, due to reduced marketing expenses partially offset by higher Paymentech expenses. Marketing expenses increased, however, from the prior quarter, contributing to the 5% increase in noninterest expense over the prior quarter.
Provision for credit losses was $246 million, an increase of $98 million, or 66%, which included the $35 million increase in the allowance for credit losses. The net charge-off ratio was 5.13%, up from 4.99%. In the prior quarter, provision for credit losses was $182 million and the net charge-off ratio was 5.17%. The 30-day delinquency ratio increased to 3.82% from 2.74% in the prior year and 3.22% in the prior quarter.
The Company believes that it is more meaningful to discuss credit performance on a managed basis as the on-balance sheet portfolio has a greater percentage of new originations and, therefore, is less seasoned. See the Managed Basis section below for this information.
Managed Basis
Card Services net income was $285 million, down 4% from the prior year, as margin compression and the higher provision for credit losses offset the benefits of higher loan volume. Net income increased $6 million, or 2%, from the prior quarter as margin improvements were partially offset by the higher provision for credit losses.
Total revenue increased 5% to $2.1 billion. Net interest income increased 5% to $1.6 billion, reflecting the effect of higher average loan balances, partially offset by modest margin compression. Average managed loans were $74.3 billion, an increase of $6.1 billion, or 9%. End-of-period loans increased $5.1 billion, or 7%, from the prior year. Noninterest income increased 5% to $470 million, primarily resulting from the benefit of increased charge volume. Charge volume increased 8% to $42.8 billion.
Compared to the prior quarter, total revenue increased 5% as margin improved by 40 basis points Net interest income increased 8%, primarily resulting from higher average loan balances and higher spread. Charge volume increased $2.3 billion or 6%. Noninterest income decreased 2% as lower securitization activity and higher rewards expense offset the benefit of increased charge volume. In addition, the prior quarter included a gain from a portfolio sale.
Paymentech Inc., the Company's merchant card processor, reported an increase in total revenue of 18% to $148 million, resulting from a 33% increase in total transactions and a 28% increase in bank card volume, driven primarily by the purchase of the Scotia Bank merchant acquirer business in the fourth quarter 2002.
Noninterest expense was $593 million, a decline of 4%, due to reduced marketing expenses partially offset by higher Paymentech expenses. Marketing expenses increased, however, from the prior quarter, contributing to the 5% increase in noninterest expense over the prior quarter.
Provision for credit losses increased $149 million, or 17%, to $1.0 billion, primarily driven by higher managed loan balances, higher non-bankruptcy losses and a $35 million increase in the allowance for credit losses. Credit ratios remained strong despite the increase in the managed net charge-off rate to 5.30% from the lower rate of 5.00% in the prior year. Compared to the prior quarter, provision for credit losses increased by $68 million, or 7%, due in part to slightly lower recoveries and an increase in the allowance for credit losses. The net charge-off ratio in the prior quarter was 5.21%. The 30-day delinquency ratio, however, decreased to 3.98% from 4.05% in the prior year but increased from 3.95% in the prior quarter.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT
Investment Management net income totaled $91 million, an increase of $12 million, or 15%, driven by the acquisition of Zurich Life, strong asset growth, and an improved market. Since Zurich closed on September 3, only one month of earnings is included.
Assets under management increased $27 billion, or 18%, to $175.5 billion. Money market, equity, and fixed income assets increased 3%, 19%, and 39%, respectively. A significant portion of the increase was driven by the institutional and external channels, which collectively increased $24 billion, or 31%. The Zurich acquisition represented $5.4 billion of the fixed income and institutional increases. One Group mutual fund assets increased $9 billion, or 10%, to $100.6 billion.
Net interest income increased $26 million, or 29%, to $115 million, primarily attributable to Zurich. Additionally, continued strong average deposit growth of $2.3 billion, or 27%, tempered by compressed margins, contributed to the increase.
Noninterest income increased $33 million, or 15%, to $257 million, primarily driven by the acquisition of Zurich. In addition, positive overall net fund flows, improved market conditions, and a more favorable mix toward long-term assets under management contributed to the increase.
Noninterest expense increased $40 million, or 22%, to $224 million, due also to Zurich. Additionally, slightly higher compensation costs and higher legal costs contributed to the overall increase.
The provision for credit losses was $4 million, an increase of $2 million, reflecting the deterioration in the credit quality of certain large loans.
CORPORATE
Corporate net loss totaled $246 million, compared with a net loss of $94 million. Corporate includes treasury activities, investment portfolios, other unallocated corporate expenses, the non-core portfolios, and the corporate trust business transferred from the Investment Management line of business and reflected as discontinued operations.
Corporate Excluding Non-core Portfolios and Discontinued Operations
In addition to the earnings impact of the non-core portfolios and the discontinued operations, which are described below, Corporate net loss for the third quarter included the following pre-tax components:
- Treasury net interest expense $(85)
- Net gain on Corporate investment activity 37
- Losses related to termination of debt (162)
- Corporate unallocated expenses (146)
Treasury net interest expense was $85 million, an increase of $124 million over the prior year and a increase of $9 million from the prior quarter. In 2002, the Company extended liability duration and repositioned the treasury investment portfolio in order to position the balance sheet more defensively for rising interest rates.
Net securities gains were $37 million, as a result of both net gains in principal investments and net losses in the treasury investment portfolio. The principal investment portfolio gains were primarily driven by the sale of Ability One. This compares to net securities losses in the prior year of $17 million and net securities gains of $154 million in the prior quarter.
The Company repaid certain floating rate debt and unwound related hedges leading to a $162 million loss, which was recognized in other income.
Corporate expenses were $146 million, compared to $162 million in the prior year and $154 million in the prior quarter.
Non-core Portfolios
Net loss from the non-core portfolios was $12 million as compared to a net loss of $69 million in the prior quarter, including the impact of an increase in the allowance for loan losses of $85 million.
Average loan balances were $11.1 billion, down 37% over the prior year and 13% over the prior quarter, as the portfolios continued to liquidate at a steady pace. Net interest income was $91 million, down $53 million, primarily due to this liquidation.
Provision for credit losses was $74 million, down $10 million, reflecting the decrease in home equity net charge-offs. Excluding the $85 million that was added to the allowance for credit losses in the prior quarter, provision increased $3 million. The net charge-off ratio increased to 2.84% from 2.60% in the prior quarter.
Discontinued Operations
As a result of the Company's announced agreement to sell its corporate trust business to JP Morgan Chase, the results of these operations have been transferred from the Investment Management Group to the Corporate line of business and reported as discontinued operations. The following table provides details of the impact of this business.
($ millions) 3Q03 2Q03 1Q03 4Q02 3Q02 2Q02 1Q02
Total Revenues $ 35 $ 36 $ 34 $ 35 $ 31 $ 30 $ 35
Total Expenses
(excl. taxes) 21 22 23 19 16 17 18
Pre-tax Income 14 14 11 16 15 13 17
Net Income 9 9 7 10 10 8 11
Total Assets 92 341 116 84 119 71 95
Other Corporate Items
Capital and leverage continued to be strong as identified below.
3Q03 2Q03 3Q02
Tier 1 Capital 9.8% 9.7% 9.5%
Total Capital 13.5% 13.6% 13.0%
Leverage 8.4% 8.7% 9.0%
The Company repurchased more than 13 million shares of common stock at an average cost of $38.86 per share. For the first nine months of 2003, purchases totaled more than 53 million shares at an average cost of $37.05 per share. As of September 30, 2003, $2.5 billion remained available under the $3 billion program that was approved in July 2003.
In accordance with FIN 46, the Company had been prepared to consolidate the assets, liabilities, and earnings associated with its asset-backed conduit business as of July 1, 2003. As a result of FASB's recent delay in the implementation date of FIN 46, the Company did not consolidate these entities, but expects to adopt FIN 46 as of December 31, 2003. Refer to the attached Supplemental Disclosures regarding the expected impact to the Company of consolidating certain asset-backed conduits under FIN 46, as currently drafted.
Bank One Corporation (www.bankone.com) is the nation's sixth-largest bank holding company, with assets of $290 billion. Bank One currently has more than 51 million credit cards issued, nearly 7 million retail households, and over 20,000 middle market customers. It also manages $175.5 billion of clients' investment assets.
Conference Call and Webcast Information
An analyst meeting and conference call discussing the quarter's results will be held today, October 21, 2003 at 3:00 p.m. (Eastern). To participate, phone (800) 818-5264 (domestic) or (913) 981-4910 (international); confirmation code 156609.
The live audio webcast will be available through the Investor Relations section of Bank One's website at www.shareholder.com/one/medialist.cfm.
A playback of this conference call will be available after 6:00 p.m. (Eastern) today through October 31, 2003, by calling (888) 203-1112 (domestic) or (719) 457-0820 (international); confirmation code 156609.
Forward-looking Statements
This discussion of financial results contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based upon management's current beliefs and expectations, and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. Such risks and uncertainties are described in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002.
Media Contact:
Thomas A. Kelly (312) 732-7007
Investor Contacts:
Amy R. Fahey (312) 732-5771
Sandra M. Moe (312) 732-8013
Charles A. Peruski (312) 732-5531
SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURES
(Estimated and Unaudited)
Anticipated Effects of FIN 46
- On October 9, 2003, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued a one-quarter deferral of the implementation of Interpretation No. 46, Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities (FIN 46). Bank One had previously announced its intent to consolidate certain variable interest entities related to its asset-backed conduit business. As a result of the FASB's deferral, the Company expects to consolidate or restructure these entities in accordance with FIN 46 in the fourth quarter. During the third quarter, banking regulators issued interim regulations that provide risk-based capital relief for certain assets that would be consolidated under FIN 46. Assuming the Company had adopted FIN 46 as it is currently written and consolidated certain asset-backed conduit entities, the balance sheet and earnings impact would have been as follows.
($ millions) Incremental
Consolidation Consolidated Results
Effect Reported 3Q03 Proforma 3Q03
Total Assets $37,666 $290,006 $327,672
Total Revenue (FTE) $11 $2,127 $2,138
Noninterest Expense $7 $2,421 $2,428
Net Income $3 $883 $886
Tier 1 Capital 0% 9.8% 9.8%
Total Capital 0% 13.5% 13.5%
Leverage (1.0)% 8.4% 7.4% |
