TD Bank reports lower profit from year ago, higher provisions for credit losses

TD Bank Group reported a first-quarter profit of $1.58 billion, down from $3.73 billion a year earlier, as it took a number of one-time charges including the cost to settle a lawsuit related to the Stanford Financial Group Ponzi scheme.

The bank said Thursday the profit amounted to 82 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Jan. 31, down from $2.02 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.

Revenue totalled $12.23 billion, up from $11.28 billion a year earlier.

Provisions for credit losses amounted to $690 million, up from $72 million a year earlier.

TD said its latest quarter included a loss of $876 million in connection with the mitigation of the impact of interest rate volatility related to its deal to buy U.S. bank First Horizon Corp. and a $1.6-billion charge related to the Stanford litigation settlement.

The bank said Monday it would pay to settle a lawsuit for its alleged role in the Ponzi scheme, one of the largest ever orchestrated. In agreeing to the settlement, TD denied any liability or wrongdoing, saying it chose to settle the case to avoid the distraction of a long legal proceeding.

On an adjusted basis, TD says it earned $2.23 per diluted share, up from an adjusted profit of $2.08 per diluted share in its first quarter last year.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of $2.20 per share, according to estimates compiled by financial markets data firm Refinitiv.

“TD had a strong start to 2023 with Canadian and U.S. retail businesses delivering robust revenue growth and record earnings, demonstrating the benefits of our diversified business mix,” TD Bank Group chief executive Bharat Masrani said in a statement.

TD said its Canadian personal and commercial banking operations earned $1.73 billion in its latest quarter, up from $1.62 billion in the same quarter last year, helped by higher margins and volume growth.

In the U.S., TD said its retail business earned $1.59 billion in the quarter, up from $1.27 billion a year earlier.

TD said its wealth management and insurance business earned $550 million, down from $636 million a year earlier, while its wholesale banking operations earned $331 million, down from $434 million in its first quarter of 2022.

TD said Thursday it was in talks with First Horizon to extend a May 27 deadline for the deal to close as it did not expect to receive the regulatory approvals it needs by that date. The Canadian bank has said it remains committed to the transaction.

TD closed its deal to U.S. investment bank Cowen Inc. on Wednesday.

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