Bank of America is reporting that its fourth-quarter profits rose by 39 percent on an adjusted basis, helped by last year's steady rise in interest rates as well as a lower tax rate.
The Charlotte-based banking giant said it earned $7.28 billion, or 70 cents a share. That's compared to $2.37 billion, or 20 cents a share, from a year earlier. Last year's results were impacted by the passage of the Republicans' tax law, and several banks, including BofA, had to write off billions of dollars in what are own as tax-deferred assets.
On an adjusted basis, profits at Bank of America rose from $5.3 billion last year to $7.28 billion.
The results beat analysts' forecasts of earnings of 63 cents a share, according to FactSet.