Germany's second-biggest lender Commerzbank swept aside fears it might record an operating loss for the fourth quarter, telling Reuters on Monday it would record a profit for the period. "As of today I have indications that the group's fourth quarter operating profit should be in the black as well," CFO Eric Strutz said on Monday. In the first nine months, Commerzbank had posted operating earnings of 1.13 billion euros ($1.46 billion) and net earnings of 1.17 billion.
"This means that Commerzbank had been positive in all four quarters 2010," Strutz said in Frankfurt prior to the bank's German Investment Seminar in New York. Strutz had said in November that he could not rule out a fourth quarter loss, although his target was to turn a profit. Analysts on average see Commerzbank posting a 73.5 million euro fourth quarter operating profit, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S estimates. Of the 15 underlying estimates, six saw an operating loss in the quarter.
The announcement left investors unimpressed. Commerzbank shares traded 2.1 percent lower at 5.48 euros by 1016 GMT, making it the biggest decliner among Germany's blue chip companies, which were down 0.6 percent. Analysts said a fourth quarter profit was good news, but the prospect of a big rights issue to pay back state aid continued to weigh on the share price. "I do not expect the earnings to be entirely derived from high-quality earnings," WestLB analyst Neil Smith said.