Is it Time to Pile into the Banks? JP Morgan Misses

JP Morgan Chase says its income fell 23 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 after the bank set aside a large sum for litigation reserves and its investment banking income declined.

The largest bank in the nation said Friday it earned $3.7 billion, or 90 cents per share. The results fell short of the 93 cents per share estimated by analysts surveyed by FactSet.

The New York bank set aside $528 million for additional litigation charges related to poorly written mortgages, while an accounting charge led to a $567 million loss. However, as more credit card customers paid on time, the bank was able to take out $730 million from its loan reserves set aside for credit card defaults.

JPMorgan’s stock fell 2.3 percent to $36.01 in pre-market trading.


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