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    Kenneth Usdin • Autonomous Research

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Northern Trust Corp (NTRS) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Northern Trust Corp (NTRS) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin questioned the company's capital return policy, asking about the potential for increased buybacks given the high CET1 ratio, and sought clarity on the path to improving the expense-to-trust-fee ratio amid market headwinds.

    Answer

    CFO David Fox indicated comfort with higher payout levels, noting the Q1 payout was 116% of earnings and that a level around 100% could be a future target. Regarding the expense ratio, Fox emphasized focusing on controlling organic expenses and growing organic trust fees, acknowledging that market fluctuations are outside their control but the long-term targets remain much lower.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Zions Bancorporation NA (ZION) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Zions Bancorporation NA (ZION) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin inquired about the capacity to reduce wholesale funding and questioned why CRE and mortgage loan balances have grown despite guidance for managed declines.

    Answer

    An executive explained that reducing wholesale funding is a goal but depends on deposit flows. Regarding loan growth, executives clarified that recent growth in CRE and residential portfolios was driven by construction loans converting to term loans and the First Bank branch acquisition, with an expectation that this trend will taper off.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Truist Financial Corp (TFC) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Truist Financial Corp (TFC) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin asked about the drivers behind the increased Q2 share buyback, questioning if it was due to confidence or an offset to slower loan growth, and inquired about Truist's ability to manage deposit costs amid potential rate cuts.

    Answer

    CEO William Rogers stated the increased buyback is an opportunistic investment in Truist, driven by a strong capital position and confidence in funding growth, not as an offset. CFO Michael Maguire added that deposit costs are being managed through a disciplined, client-centric approach and enhanced by new analytical tools that allow for more surgical pricing.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to US Bancorp (USB) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to US Bancorp (USB) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin from Autonomous Research asked for the bank's current interest rate assumptions, the status of the prepaid card fee headwind, and the outlook for capital markets.

    Answer

    CFO John Stern stated the forecast now includes two Fed cuts in 2025. He confirmed the prepaid card headwind is now fully resolved and that the capital markets business has strong momentum and pipelines, particularly in FX and derivatives, driven by market volatility.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Citigroup Inc (C) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Citigroup Inc (C) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin asked for the expected cadence of credit card losses for the remainder of the year and for clarification on the NII outlook, including the impact of the card fee accounting change and the assumed interest rate curve.

    Answer

    CFO Mark Mason reiterated the expectation for credit losses to be higher in the first half of the year before trending down, noting that delinquency trends support this outlook. CEO Jane Fraser added that proactive risk tightening also positions them well. On NII, Mason explained the guidance range was not changed despite the removal of late fees due to other puts and takes, and that the outlook now assumes four rate cuts, which has a minimal impact due to their expected back-loaded timing.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Wells Fargo & Co (WFC) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Wells Fargo & Co (WFC) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin asked about the regulatory backdrop, specifically how the progress on terminating consent orders might be impacted by changes in regulatory leadership, and questioned the rationale for the loan loss reserve adjustment.

    Answer

    CEO Charlie Scharf expressed confidence that progress on consent orders will continue, stating that regulators are objective and fact-based, and the company's approach does not need to change. CFO Mike Santomassimo explained the allowance for credit losses was adjusted to reflect potential economic weakness, noting that without this adjustment, the reserve release would have been larger. He emphasized the firm's conservative approach, which includes a significant weighting on downside scenarios.

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    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) leadership

    Kenneth Usdin's questions to Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) leadership • Q2 2024

    Question

    Kenneth Usdin asked for more context on the bank's downside deposit beta expectations and how that interacts with deposit-gathering strategies. He also questioned the drivers behind the forecast for record NII in 2025, asking if it's more dependent on loan growth or rate scenarios.

    Answer

    CFO Bryan Preston explained that rate cuts would allow for more aggressive repricing on promotional and CD portfolios, while indexed commercial deposits would reprice down immediately. He clarified that the path to record NII is driven primarily by the existing balance sheet dynamics—namely fixed-rate asset repricing and slowing deposit cost pressures—rather than requiring significant loan growth.

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