U.S. Bancorp (USB) saw its profit rise 28% in the first quarter of 2012 as the bank reported new commercial real estate lending and $25.1 billion in mortgage and other retail loan originations.
The bank also noted a lower provision for credit losses, suggesting fewer write-offs on bad assets.
For the first quarter, the company posted net income of $1.33 billion, or 67 cents a share, compared to a profit of $1.046 billion, or 52 cents a share, for the same period a year earlier.
Net revenue in the first quarter hit $4.9 billion, up 9.1% from last year.
The bank’s net charge-offs declined 8.2% from the fourth quarter of 2011. In addition, early and late stage delinquencies on loans declined in most loan categories, while nonperforming assets declined 5.9% from the fourth quarter. Charge-offs on residential loans alone fell to $112 million, or 1.19% of average loans outstanding, in the first quarter of 2012, that is down from $119 million in the fourth quarter of 2011 and $129 million in 1Q of 2011.
During the quarter, the bank recorded $56 billion in new lending activity, which included $28.9 billion of new and renewed commercial and commercial real estate commitments, $2 billion of lines related to new credit card accounts and $25.1 billion of mortgage and other retail originations.
