Citi beats 1st-quarter earnings forecasts as trading desks capitalize on volatility

• Citigroup shares rose on Thursday following first-quarter results that surpassed Wall Street targets.
• Trading revenue during the volatile period fell to $5.83 billion but was better than anticipated.

Citigroup shares rose Thursday as the company posted first-quarter earnings that surpassed Wall Street's targets during a volatile period overall for banks with financial markets rocked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Revenue: $19.19 billion, versus FactSet estimate of $18.19 billion.

Earnings per share: $2.02 per share, versus $1.43 estimate

Citi's revenue from trading equities and fixed income came in at $5.83 billion, marking a decline of 1.8% from a year ago but the result was higher than the $5.09 billion estimate from Bloomberg.

Profit sank 46% from a year earlier to $4.3 billion, with the investment and retail bank attributing the drop to higher credit costs, higher expenses, and lower revenues. Citi, led by CEO Jane Fraser, set aside $1.9 billion to shield itself from potential losses stemming from its exposure to Russia and the broader impact of the Ukraine conflict on the macroeconomic environment.

Bank earnings began rolling out this week. Morgan Stanley on Thursday posted better-than-expected per-share earnings of $2.02 a share and Goldman Sachs topped estimates with earnings of $10.76 a share. Wells Fargo earnings beat expectations but revenue of $17.59 billion fell short. JPMorgan took a $524 million hit from assets tied to Russia in the first quarter.