Jane Fraser, CEO of Citigroup, attends a hearing on Annual Oversight of Wall Street Firms before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs in Washington, D.C., the United States, on Dec. 6, 2023.
Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
Citigroup on Tuesday posted first-quarter results that exceeded analysts’ estimates as the firm’s traders generated more revenue than expected.
Here’s what the company reported:
- Earnings: $1.96 per share vs. $1.85 per share LSEG estimate
- Revenue: $21.60 billion, vs. $21.29 billion expected
The bank said profit rose 21% to $4.1 billion, or $1.96 per share, on higher revenue and lower expenses from the year-earlier period. Companywide revenue climbed 3% to $21.60 billion as the firm cited gains in its five major divisions.
Shares of the lender rose 3%.
CEO Jane Fraser said the bank was continuing to earn credibility with investors and that she remains focused on executing on her strategy, which includes a diverse set of businesses that “will perform in a wide variety of macro scenarios.”
She also seemed to address recent concerns about the U.S. economy that have surfaced as President Donald Trump sought to restructure deals with America’s trading partners.
“When all is said and done, and longstanding trade imbalances and other structural shifts are behind us, the U.S. will still be the world’s leading economy, and the dollar will remain the reserve currency,” Fraser said.
Citigroup’s fixed income traders generated $4.5 billion in revenue on heightened activity in markets for currencies and government bonds, 8% more than a year earlier and topping the $4.33 billion StreetAccount estimate.
Equities traders saw revenue rise 23% to $1.5 billion, topping the $1.4 billion estimate, as “increased market volatility” and higher client activity led to more transactions.
JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs each exceeded analysts’ estimates on a boom in equities trading revenue as the banks took advantage of volatility in the quarter.
Shares of Citigroup have dropped 10% this year amid a broad sell-off in banks related to Trump’s tariff policies.
