"Together we'll go far." Wells Fargo's corporate slogan is a pledge to its customers, but it might just as well reflect the San Francisco banking giant's optimism about its takeover of Wachovia, a teetering rival it snatched from under Citigroup's nose last October. Losses from the acquisition are "still in the same zip code" as the sum envisaged at the time, says John Stumpf, Wells's chief executive. In another sign of self-confidence, Dick Kovacevich will step down as chairman at the end of the year, a move that would be hard to imagine if the bank's hands-on former boss were worried about the future.
Others are less convinced, suspecting Wells of understating Wachovia's loan losses and questioning its accounting. Fuelling these worries, says Dick Bove of Rochdale Securities, is "extraordinarily poor" communications and disclosure. Alone among big banks, Wells does not hold a quarterly call for analysts. (more) and (more)
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