Capital One posts higher second quarter profit

New York • Capital One Financial Corp. said Thursday that second-quarter profit rose 8 percent as it set aside less money for bad loans and its domestic card business returned to growth.

McLean, Va.-based Capital One said net income after paying preferred dividends rose to $1.18 billion, or $2.04 per share, in the three months ended June 30. That compares with net income of $1.09 billion, or $1.85 per share, in the same period a year earlier.

The results exceeded the average forecast of analysts polled by FactSet, who had predicted earnings of $1.82 per share.

Earnings got a boost from lower provisions for credit losses, which fell 8 percent to $704 million, compared to the same period in 2013.

Ending loans from domestic cards climbed 1 percent from a year ago and 4 percent from the first quarter, to $71.17 billion. Auto loan originations jumped 19 percent from a year ago to $5.38 billion.

Revenue fell 3 percent to $5.47 billion from $5.64 billion a year earlier. Analysts had an average forecast of $5.43 billion.

Capital One shares were little changed in after-hours trading. Shares had ended regular trading down $1.89, or 2.2 percent, at $82.49. That compares with a fall of 1.2 percent for the Standard & Poor's 500 index.