hbc

The bank noted in its statement that, "The Settlement, which is solely in respect of investors in Thema, shall in no way be construed or deemed to be evidence of or an admission or concession with respect to any claim of any fault

HSBC, along with several other banks, is involved in a series of legal actions

HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE:HBC) said Tuesday it has agreed to pay $62.5 million to a group of investors in New York that invested in Thema International Fund PLC, a fund that it serviced which lost money in Bernie Madoff's ponzi sche

Wall Street estimated for $14.02 billion. Analysts said rising costs were the biggest disappointment and were above expectations due to infrastructure spending and the cost of recruiting customer-facing staff.

Recently appointed CEO Stuart Gulliver told analysts on a conference call that the bank's cost efficiency was "unacceptable" and that it is taking steps to
address the issue.

U.K. banking giant HSBC Holdings (HBC) reported its 2010 net profit more than doubled to $13.16 bln. However, ADRs are falling as this number is below the average analyst expectation.

Rising costs were around $1.7 billion, due to infrastructure spending and the cost of recruiting customer-facing staff.

HSBC Holdings has a potential upside of 3.5% based on a current price of $57.27 and an average consensus analyst price target of $59.26.

HSBC Holdings PLC (NYSE:HBC) reported that its 2010 net profit more than doubled to $13.16 billion, up from $5.83 billion in 2009, missing consensus estimates of $14.02 billion.