Fewer banks expected to fail despite longer ‘problem list’

The number of banks on regulators’ “problem list” rose from 860 at the end of the third quarter of 2010 to 884 in the fourth quarter, meaning one in every nine U.S. banks and thrifts is considered to be at risk of collapse.

Nonetheless, failures are expected to decline in 2011 compared with last year, and the industry’s provisions for losses on loans are much lower as the worst of the financial crisis drifts into the past, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. says.

In its quarterly report on the banking industry, released Wednesday, the FDIC said the more than 7,600 commercial banks and savings institutions that it insures turned an aggregate profit of $21.7 billion in the fourth quarter.

That compared with a $1.8 billion loss in the fourth quarter of 2009. 

Ford announces truck recall under government pressure

Under government pressure, Ford Motor Co. said Wednesday it will recall nearly 150,000 F-150 pickup trucks to fix air bags that could deploy without warning. The number is a fraction of the vehicles the government contends should be called back and repaired.

The recall covers trucks from the 2005-2006 model years in the United States and Canada for what the Dearborn, Mich., company calls a “relatively low risk” of the air bag deploying inadvertently.

The government, however, has urged Ford to recall 1.3 million F-150s from the 2004-2006 model years, citing 98 injuries from air bags deploying accidentally. Ford’s F-Series pickup truck is the best-selling vehicle in America. 

DirecTV defies analysts by posting healthy profit

DirecTV, the largest U.S. satellite- television provider, posted a fourth-quarter profit Wednesday that beat analysts’ estimates on rising demand for high-definition and digital-video recording services.

Net income was $618 million, or 74 cents a share, compared with a loss of $32 million, or 3 cents, a year earlier, El Segundo, Calif.-based DirecTV said in a statement. Analysts predicted 63 cents, the average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales rose 11 percent.

Better Christmas sales help bottom line for Zale

Diamond retailer Zale Corp. said second-quarter profit more than quadrupled, in part the result of a better Christmas holiday, which helped boost sales 7.6 percent.

Dallas-based Zale, which has struggled to regain profitability as the economy improves, posted net income of $27.2 million, or 73 cents per share, compared with $6.7 million, or 21 cents per share a year ago.

Revenue for the quarter ended Jan. 31 rose to $626.4 million from $582.3 million. 

New York securities workers reap $20.8 billion in bonuses

Wall Street paid an estimated $20.8 billion in bonuses to New York City securities industry employees for 2010, the first full year after the national recession officially ended, New York state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said Wednesday.

The number reflects an industry shift toward deferred compensation and higher base salaries, DiNapoli said. “Cash bonuses are down, but that’s not an indication of weakness on Wall Street,” he said.

The estimate of bonuses is down 8 percent from $22.5 billion actually paid in 2009. But it is $500 million more than DiNapoli’s bonus estimate a year ago. Bonuses extended into March and April last year, beyond the traditional season. 

Trustee for Madoff victims sues family of SEC counsel

The trustee trying to recover money for victims of Bernard Madoff’s infamous Ponzi scheme is trying to recoup more than $1.5 million of Madoff payouts from the family of David Becker, the general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The lawsuit is part of trustee Irving Picard’s campaign to “claw back” funds from investors who were net winners in the Ponzi scheme, meaning they took out more than they put in. The lawsuit does not accuse the Becker family of any wrongdoing.

The trustee sued Becker and his two brothers as executors and beneficiaries of their mother’s estate.

When their mother, Dorothy Becker, died in 2004, she held a Madoff account with a reported balance of more than $2 million, according to a court filing. The Becker brothers liquidated the account in 2005.