SunTrust Fourth-Quarter Earnings In Line With Estimates

SunTrust Banks (STI Quote) posted fourth-quarter earnings Wednesday in line with analysts' expectations.

The Atlanta-based bank, the nation's tenth-largest and the first major bank to report earnings, said fourth-quarter net income, excluding charges, was $331.9 million, or $1.12 a share, up from $1.06 a share earned in the same period last year. According to First Call/Thomson Financial, 18 analysts produced a consensus estimate of $1.12 a share for the quarter.

Including $1.5 million in after-tax, merger-related charges, income for the quarter was $330.4 million, or $1.11 a share. SunTrust also said it recorded an extraordinary gain of $335.3 million or $1.06 a share, during the fourth quarter. ...