Wells Fargo expenses rise to two-year high, crimping profit

Fourth-quarter expenses climbed 4.7% from a year earlier to $12.6 billion, the San Francisco-based bank said on Wednesday in a statement

Wells Fargo & Co, the most valuable US bank, said expenses rose to the highest level in two years as the lender paid employees more and increased spending on risk-monitoring.

Fourth-quarter expenses climbed 4.7 per cent from a year earlier to $12.6 billion, the San Francisco-based bank said on Wednesday in a statement. The increase crimped net income, which rose 1.8 per cent to $5.71 billion, or $1.02 a share. The average estimate of 22 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for profit of $1.01 a share under generally accepted accounting principles.