JPMorgan Chase reports its most profitable year ever

JPMorgan Chase kicked off earnings season Friday with some mixed news.

The bank’s fourth-quarter profit fell by 15% from the year before, to $9.3 billion, less than analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected. Profit was dragged lower by a $2.9 billion charge JPMorgan had to pay related to the regional banking crisis.

But the bank also reported that it notched its most profitable year on record. JPMorgan’s revenue rose by 23% to $158 billion in 2023. Profit also grew by 32% for the year to $49.6 billion.

For the fourth quarter, the bank saw revenue grow by 12% to $38.6 billion, lower than the $39.7 billion estimated by FactSet analysts.

JPMorgan, the largest US bank by assets is often viewed as a bellwether for the rest of Wall Street.

CEO Jamie Dimon wrote in the report that the US economy remains strong but that Wall Street may be underestimating inflation levels.

“It is important to note that the economy is being fueled by large amounts of government deficit spending and past stimulus. There is also an ongoing need for increased spending due to the green economy, the restructuring of global supply chains, higher military spending and rising healthcare costs. This may lead inflation to be stickier and rates to be higher than markets expect.” he wrote.

Shares of JPMorgan soared 27% last year, the best among all of the large banks in the US. Shares of the stock were up 1.8% in premarket trading.

This story is breaking and will be updated.