Bank of America’s second-quarter net income shot up 63% to $4 billion, or 32 cents per share, from $2.5 billion, or 19 cents per share in the 2Q 2012.
The surge in profit was driven by year-over-year improvements in net interest income, investment banking fees and credit quality as well as expense reductions.
Despite the uptick in revenue, lower mortgage banking income worked to offset the increase.
The mega bank funded $26.8 billion in residential home loans and home equity loans during the 2Q 2013, increasing 7% from 1Q 2013, and 41% higher than year ago figures.
In addition, the amount of 60+ days delinquent first mortgage loans serviced by the Legacy Assets and Servicing division fell 26% during the second quarter to 492,000 loans, down from 667,000 loans at the end of the first quarter and a 54% drop from last year.
As a whole, 83% of first mortgages were refinances and 17% were for home purchases.
Meanwhile, Bank of America's (BAC) sales force of financial solutions advisors, mortgage loan officers and small business bankers increased to more than 6,800 specialists in the 2Q, up 21% from the same period a year ago, reflecting the company's continued commitment to deepening customer relationships.
In addition, net revenue slightly rose 3%, or $747 million, from the 2Q 2012, to $22.9 billion.
"At the beginning of the year, we said we would focus on three things – revenue stability, strengthening the balance sheet and managing costs," said Chief Financial Officer Bruce Thompson.
He expanded saying, "This quarter, we delivered on all three. Revenue increased 3%, we continued to build capital ratios, despite the negative impact of higher interest rates on our bond portfolio, and we reduced expenses related to servicing delinquent mortgage loans at a faster rate than we originally expected."
