U.S. Bancorp ended its year with hefty earnings strengthened by higher fees and disciplined spending, as executives predicted revenue growth of up to 5% this year.

The Minneapolis-based company that runs U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest bank in the nation, delivered net income of $1.75 billion for the last three months of the year, up 7% from the fourth quarter the year before.

In a call with analysts Thursday morning, CEO Andy Cecere called 2024 a “pivotal year for the company in many ways.”

The chief executive pointed to uncertainties such as inflation, rate volatility and regulatory concerns last year, saying the company “effectively managed through the changes.”

“It was effective balance sheet management, our financial discipline and expanding interconnectedness across the franchise that enabled us to fully deliver the strong results we did this quarter, and [we] fully expect that momentum to continue into 2025,” Cecere said.

The earnings came a day after several other of the nation’s largest banks, including Citigroup and Wells Fargo, posted banner quarters to close out the year. New York-based JPMorgan Chase, the nation’s largest bank, touted a net income gain of 50% in an outcome that beat Wall Street expectations.

U.S. Bank leaders point to disciplined approach in expenses as it trimmed its scale of brick-and-mortar corporate office spaces and its spending on third-party consulting. The bank has also limited its staff numbers, choosing not to refill positions lost to natural attrition, John Stern, U.S. Bank’s chief financial officer, said in an interview Thursday.

“Our headcount has declined over the year,” Stern said. “But again, it’s more or less not filling positions as people leave and getting better at being operationally efficient within our core processes. That’s really the bottom line.”

U.S. Bank saw an increase in commercial loans and credit cards, and saw lower gains in mortgages, softened by higher interest rates, and commercial real estate, an area challenged since the pandemic.

Stern said the company expects loan growth next year as the bank predicts total revenue growth between 3% to 5%, aligning with analysts’ expectations.

Still, some analysts said U.S. Bank’s lending profits have fallen behind its peers in the fourth quarter.

Kyle Sanders, an analyst with Edward Jones, said the 2025 outlook was “solid but not spectacular” as several other banks “provided 2025 outlooks that exceeded consensus forecasts.”

Earnings per share for the quarter increased from 99 cents in 2023 to $1.07 per share, slightly outpacing analysts' estimates. Net revenue increased 3.8% to $7 billion for the quarter ending Dec. 31, which included a touch under $4.2 billion in net interest income.

Over the past year, the bank grew roughly 2% overall, keeping expenses largely flat. In all, the bank reported a net income of $6.3 billion, as earnings outside interest increased by nearly 4%.

Shares closed on Thursday at $48.04, down nearly 6%.