BBVA Reports Loss In Q4, Full-year Profit Climbs

(RTTNews) - Spanish financial services firm Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA) Friday reported a loss for the fourth-quarter. The results reflected lower net interest income and trading income. For the full year, it reported profit, which climbed 33 percent from last year.

For the fourth quarter, the company's net attributable loss was 849 million euros or 0.14 euros per share, compared with a profit of 20 million euros or 0.01 euros per share in the previous year.

However, on an adjusted basis, the company reported net attributable profit of 783 million euros, or 0.13 euros per share in the recent quarter, compared with 1.02 billion euros or 0.18 euros per share a year ago.

Adjusted results excluded the results from corporate operations, result of real estate activity in Spain, and classification of refinanced loans, the company said.

Operating income was 2.47 billion euros, lower than 2.84 billion euros reported in 2012.

Net interest income slid to 3.76 billion euros from 3.91 billion euros in the same quarter last year. Net fees and commissions income was 1.14 billion euros, compared to 1.13 billion euros a year earlier. Net trading income declined to 609 million euros from 646 million euros in the preceding year.

For the full-year 2013, BBVA posted net attributable profit of 2.23 billion euros, up 33 percent from last year. Operating income declined 8.2 percent at current rates to 10.20 billion euros, and was down 3.0 percent at constant rates.

The Group said its geographic diversification and the businesses' positive developments provided a boost to annual earnings.

Net interest income and net fee income declined 2.2 percent at current exchange rates to 19.04 billion euros, but increased 3.5 percent before taking into account exchange rate fluctuations.

According to the company, banking activity in Spain was once again in a complex environment. Real estate business in Spain continued to reduce its net exposure to the sector, and was down 19.1 percent since December 2011, and it increased the pace of sales. During 2013 it sold 14,390 units, up 43.2 percent from a year ago.

Meanwhile, in the U.S., there was a jump in business activity despite the background of low interest rates.

Core capital ratio under Basel II was 11.6 percent, compared to 10.8 percent a year earlier. The core capital ratio according to Basel III fully-loaded rules was 9.8 percent, well above the regulatory minimum requirements, the firm added.

In Madrid, the shares closed Thursday's trading at 8.84 euros, up 0.97 percent.