BankAmerica’s Quarterly, Annual Earnings Improve

Due to lower loan charge-offs, BankAmerica Corp. reported improved fourth-quarter and annual earnings Wednesday.

The parent of Bank of America said its quarterly profit was $496 million, up 5% from $486 million in the fourth quarter of 1992. For all of 1993, BofA’s profit was $1.95 billion, up 31% from $1.49 billion in 1992.

Brent Erensel, of UBS Securities, noted the continuing decline in the bank’s net interest income--the difference between what it receives in payments on loans and other assets and what it pays out to depositors.

“They aren’t unique in the industry, and BofA faces the special challenge of trying to generate revenue in a weak California economy,” Erensel said.

However, Paine Webber bank analyst Lawrence W. Cohn said he was encouraged by the slight increase in BofA’s total loans over the three months ended Dec. 31--the first quarter-to-quarter increase since the bank merged with Security Pacific in April, 1992. That could mean that California’s economy “has finally hit bottom and is showing some growth,” Cohn said.

BankAmerica stock fell $1.125 to $46.50 in New York Stock Exchange trading Wednesday. With $187 billion in assets, Bank of America is the nation’s second-largest bank.

The higher fourth-quarter profit was a result of the decline in the bank’s loan-loss provision, to $150 million from $270 million reported in the fourth quarter of 1992. For all of 1993, the bank’s bad-loan write-offs were $803 million, down from $1.01 billion in 1992.

The bank continues to clean up its bad loans. Non-accrual loans and foreclosures totaled $3.4 billion in 1993, compared to $5.7 billion in 1992.