Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf gave CNBC’s Jim Cramer a positive read on the consumer landscape.
“The consumer’s been extremely resilient,” he said. “We don’t sit here and say risks don’t exist — But what we see looks pretty, pretty strong.”
According to Scharf, consumer spend is going up “at a very measured pace” in both debit and credit cards. Deposit balances, he added, remain strong and credit quality is “still performing extremely well.” He praised the Federal Reserve, saying the central bank managed the economy well under difficult circumstances.
Wells Fargo’s most recent quarter topped Wall Street’s expectations, and shares surged more than 4% last Friday just after the report. The company managed a substantial earnings beat, even as its net interest income — a measure of banks’ lending revenue — declined. By Tuesday’s close, Wells Fargo was up 1.40%.
While Scharf said Wells Fargo does care about its quarterly results, he suggested the market can obsess over reports more than management does. He pointed out that the stock fell after last quarter but jumped after the most recent one — even though trends are “not dramatically different,” and strategies, as well as progress on building business hasn’t changed significantly.
Scharf also remained neutral when asked about what results of the upcoming presidential election could mean for business.
“We’re going to work with both sides,” he said. “I’m encouraged by what both candidates are saying about the way they want to interact with business.”
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Disclaimer The CNBC Investing Club Charitable Trust holds shares of Wells Fargo.
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