JUPITER, Florida (June 27, 2011) — Weiss Ratings downgrades Wells Fargo Bank NA from C- to D placing it on Weiss’ Weakest List of U.S. Banks and Thrifts alongside other major institutions such as JP Morgan and Bank of America, according to the latest quarterly review by Weiss Ratings, the nation’s leading independent provider of bank, credit union and insurance company ratings. Wells Fargo was upgraded to C- in March based on improved fourth quarter results but fell again to D based on first quarter results.
Meanwhile, GE Capital Financial, Goldman Sachs, Sallie Mae and Nationwide Bank are considered some of the strongest banks and thrifts with assets of $3 billion and greater based on March 31, 2011 data.
Weiss Ratings covers 7,528 banks and thrifts, assigning a Financial Strength Rating from A+ to E- to each, based on capitalization, asset quality, profitability, liquidity, stability and other factors. Weiss Ratings found that 2,553, or 34%, of total banks and thrifts received a rating of D+ or lower, while 11.3%, or 848, of financial institutions merited inclusion in Weiss Ratings’ Strongest List, requiring a Weiss Rating of B+ and higher.
Large banks and thrifts on Weiss Ratings’ Weakest List (with a Weiss Financial Strength Rating of D+ or lower) include:
In contrast, large banks and thrifts on the Strongest List (with a Weiss Financial Strength Rating of B+ or higher) include:
To view Weiss Ratings’ free list of the weakest and strongest banks and thrifts, consumers should visit www.weissratings.com/banklists.
About Weiss Ratings
Weiss Ratings, the nation’s leading independent provider of bank, credit union and insurance company financial strength ratings and sovereign debt ratings, accepts no payments for its ratings from rated institutions. It also distributes independent investment ratings on the shares of thousands of publicly traded companies, mutual funds, closed-end funds and ETFs.
