Charges Hammer Bank of America Earnings

For the full year, the bank reported EPS of $0.25 on revenues of $84.24 billion. A year ago it reported EPS of $0.01 on revenues of $94.43 billion. The consensus estimate called for EPS of $0.24 on revenues of $86.9 billion.

Bank of America’s CEO looked to the coming year for solace:

We enter 2013 strong and well positioned for further growth. Double-digit growth since last year in mortgage production, commercial lending, and Global Markets revenue demonstrates the power of deeper customer and client relationships as we intensify the focus on connecting all our capabilities.

Fourth-quarter results were dragged down by a litany of charges that included a $2.7 billion charge on an $11.6 billion settlement with Fannie Mae related to loans made by Countrywide Financial, which Bank of America acquired in 2008. Another $2.5 billion was related to settling foreclosure missteps. All told, the bank charged off more than $7 billion in the fourth quarter.

For the full year, the consensus estimates call for EPS of $0.97 on revenues of $90.73 billion. For the first quarter of the new year, the consensus estimate for EPS is $0.22 on revenue of $23.41 billion.

Shares are down about 0.9% in premarket trading this morning, at $11.68 in a 52-week range of $6.44 to $12.20. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $12.00 before today’s results were announced.