April 30, 2012
McLEAN, Va. — Capital One’s auto business posted positive developments in numerous auto finance areas during the first quarter, including originations, charge-offs and delinquency rates.
According to the company’s recently released financial statement, Capital One’s first-quarter auto finance originations came in at $4.3 billion, up 19.1 percent from the fourth quarter of last year. The gain left Capital One with $23.56 billion in vehicle contracts on its balance sheet for the quarter that ended March 31.
“Auto loan originations grew 19 percent from the prior quarter. We’re pleased that we achieved this growth while maintaining tight underwriting standards, and much of the growth in the first quarter was in prime loans,” chairman and chief executive officer Richard Fairbank stated.
“While the pace of originations growth is likely to moderate, we expect that loans will continue to grow throughout 2012,” Fairbank added.
Capital One highlighted its auto net charge-off rate declined after rising for two consecutive quarters. The first-quarter reading settled at 1.41 percent, down from the fourth quarter of last year when it was 2.07 percent as well as the third quarter when it was 1.69 percent.
Furthermore, the company’s 30-day delinquency rate associated with its vehicle contracts halted a string of increases that spanned two straight quarters to decrease to the lowest reading in a year. The first-quarter rate dipped to 4.87 percent, down from 6.88 percent in the fourth quarter and 6.34 percent in the third quarter.
Also, Capital One’s non-performing asset rate for its auto financing arm improved to its lowest level in a year, as well. The first-quarter rate dropped to 0.32 percent, down from the previous quarter of 0.58 percent.
As an entire company, Capital One Financial Corp. announced its first-quarter net income was $1.4 billion or $2.72 per diluted common share.
Without the impact of a bargain purchase gain related to the ING Direct acquisition, the company calculated its first-quarter net income would have been $809 million or $1.56 per diluted common share.
Executives said both figures compares with net income of $407 million or $0.88 per diluted common share, for the fourth quarter, and net income of $1.0 billion, or $2.21 per diluted common share in the year-ago quarter.
“We completed the ING Direct acquisition in the quarter, and we’re thrilled to welcome the customers and associates of ING Direct to Capital One. We now look forward to completing the acquisition of the HSBC U.S. card business in the second quarter,” Fairbank shared.
“The combination of Capital One, ING Direct and the HSBC U.S. card business puts us in an even stronger position to create sustained shareholder value through growth potential, strong returns and strong capital generation,” Fairbank continued.
“We’re focused on delivering that value, including distributing capital to shareholders through a meaningful dividend and share buybacks, consistent with our long-standing commitment to maintaining a strong and resilient capital base,” he concluded.