Citigroup (NYSE:C), the nation’s third-largest financial institution, today announced that its first-quarter profit fell 2.3%. However, the New York-based bank’s earnings were better than analysts’ projections, reports CNNMoney.

The floundering financial giant reported net income of $2.9 billion, or 95 cents per share, on revenues of $19.4 billion. Last year, Citi reported a profit of $3 billion, or 99 cents per share in the first quarter

Vikram Pandit, Citi’s chief executive officer, said in a statement, “While our businesses operated in an improved environment, we also saw the benefit of our investments. We generated revenue growth and had positive operating leverage across all three of Citi’s core businesses.”

Since the company was one of four mega banks to fail the Fed’s stress test last month, its recent request for permission to increase its dividend was denied.

Pandit admits that Citi is optimistic, but treading cautiously.

“While the operating environment improved in the first quarter, there is still much macro uncertainty and we will continue to manage risk carefully. We will continue to leverage the depth and the scale of our global presence to serve our clients and grow our businesses,” Pandit said.

In afternoon trading, shares of Citigroup were at $34.35, up 2.81% from Friday’s close.