Truist Financial Corp. grew its income by 31.6% to $986 million during the first quarter of 2020, despite merger-related and restructuring charges as well as “discretionary actions” related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The company also added $893 million to its reserves during the quarter to address expected future losses related to the virus.
Truist posted net income of $749 million in the first quarter of 2019.
Its revenue similarly grew to $5.6 billion in Q1 2020, compared to $2.9 billion for the same period last year.
But results were weighed down by merger and restructuring costs of $107 million ($82 million after-tax), incremental operating expenses related to the merger of $74 million ($57 million after-tax).
The impact of actions undertaken by management related to COVID-19 during the quarter was also estimated at $71 million ($54 million after-tax).
“The COVID-19 pandemic has altered life as we know it, and our hearts go out to everyone affected by this global health crisis,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kelly S. King. “The combination of our two heritage companies positions Truist well to support our clients, communities and teammates in this challenging environment.
“As a well-capitalized institution with a strong liquidity position, we have seen significant growth in loans as our commercial clients drew down their lines of credit and have also seen a flight to quality as many of our clients move funds out of the financial markets and into deposit accounts,” King continued.
“In this challenging time, we are fortunate to have the ability to fulfill that purpose and support our Truist family and stakeholders, help stabilize the economy and look forward to a recovery in the future.”
