Wells Fargo 2008 Annual Report Download - page 4

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John Stumpf, President and CEO
To our owners
In 2008 Wells Fargo earned a profi t of $2.7 billion, or 70 cents
per share. Revenue increased 6 percent to $41.90 billion.
Average earning assets rose 17 percent. Average loans rose
16 percent. Average core deposits were up 7 percent. Since
mid-2007, even as credit markets contracted and many of
our competitors retrenched, we were an engine of growth
for the U.S. economy. We made more than a half a trillion
dollars in new loan commitments and mortgage originations
— $540 billion. We achieved the highest total shareholder
return among all our peers — and remained one of the world’s
strongest fi nancial institutions. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
has the highest credit rating currently given to U.S. banks
by Moody’s Investors Service, “Aa1,” and Standard & Poor’s
Ratings Services, “AA+.” Our Board increased Wells Fargo’s
dividend by 10 percent — the 21st consecutive year our
Company increased its dividend, exceeding $4.3 billion —
and maintained our dividend in fi rst quarter 2009.