Bank of America reported net income was up 30% from $5.3 billion to a record $6.9 billion. The performance in Q1/18 was the largest quarterly profit in Bank of America’s history, surpassing the previous record set in 2011.

The following highlights were excerpted from the news release:

• The Tax Act resulted in an ongoing reduction to the effective tax rate of around nine percentage points.
• The bank said average loan balances in the business segments rose $45 billion, or 5%, to $864 billion.
• The provision for credit losses of $834 million in Q1/18 compared to $835 million a year earlier.
• At period end, nonperforming assets of $6,694 million were down 12.3% from $7,637 a year earlier. The nonperforming asset ratio dropped from 84% to 72% year over year.

Commenting on the bank’s performance, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said, “Our responsible growth model continues to deliver consistent results. Strong client activity, coupled with a growing global economy and solid U.S. consumer activity, led to record quarterly earnings. We grew loans in our business segments by $45 billion and increased deposits by $41 billion. We continue to invest in new capabilities in our mobile banking app, the expansion and renovation of our financial centers, and the hiring of additional client relationship professionals. We believe these investments, and our focus on operational excellence, will drive sustainable growth over time.”

Chief Financial Officer Paul M. Donofrio said, “This was a strong quarter. Revenue ws up 4% year-over-year and expesnes were down 1%, making this the 13th consecutive quarter of positive operating leverage. We also carefully managed credit costs. This enabled us to deliver double-digit EPS growth. We also returned $6.1 billion in capital to our shareholders through dividends and common stock repurchases.