Citigroup Profit Beats Street, Revenue Falls Short

(CNBC) -- Citigroup reported lower first-quarter profit on Monday, as the bank worked to contain expenses in the face of volatile capital markets and the need to finish overhauling its business portfolio after the financial crisis.

The global financial services company posted first-quarter earnings of $1.11 per share, excluding the impact of accounting adjustments for changes in the value of its debt and that of counterparties. That was up from $1 a share in the year-earlier period.

The New York-based lender said net income was $2.93 billion, compared with $2.99 billion a year ago.

Revenue fell to $19.4 billion from $19.73 billion a year ago.

Analysts had expected the company to report earnings excluding items of $1 a share, on $19.81 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

Revenue from its ongoing securities trading and investment banking declined 12 percent from the strong quarter a year earlier, but rose 65 percent from the weak 2011 fourth quarter.