Citigroup Profit Misses Analysts' Estimates on Credit Spreads...

Citigroup Inc., the third-largest U.S. bank, said earnings were $1.31 billion, less than analysts estimated, as narrowing credit spreads reduced pretax profit by $1.1 billion.

Fourth-quarter net income was 4 cents a share, compared with a $7.58 billion loss, or 33 cents, in the same period in 2009, New York-based Citigroup said today in a statement. Eight analysts had predicted in a Bloomberg survey that Citigroup would report a per-share profit of 7 cents.

The $10.6 billion in 2010 earnings mark the first profitable year under Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit, 54. Pandit took over in December 2007 and led Citigroup to losses of $29.3 billion during the next two years. The U.S. Treasury, which gave the bank a taxpayer-funded $45 billion bailout in 2008, also sold the last of its stake in the fourth quarter. Citigroup stock rose 43 percent during the year.