Stock market investors have been waiting for the beginning of earnings season for weeks, and in many people's eyes, today was the day that it finally came. That's because three large banks -- JPMorgan Chase (JPM 1.44%), Wells Fargo (WFC -0.26%), and Citigroup (C 2.82%) -- reported their latest financial results, giving their shareholders a chance to see how their businesses held up during a turbulent period that included the failure of several midsize banking institutions.

Stock market futures had been lower prior to the earnings reports, but they perked up after the latest reports from the bank stocks. Here's a quick look at what these three companies said and what it could mean for stock investors as earnings season progresses.

JPMorgan leads the way

Shares of JPMorgan Chase performed the best Friday morning, rising almost 6% in premarket trading. The Wall Street bank's first-quarter results gave investors just about everything they had wanted to see.

JPMorgan set a new record with revenue of $38.3 billion during the quarter, up 25% year over year. That produced net income of $12.6 billion, with earnings of $4.10 per share jumping 56% from the year-ago period. The bank cited higher interest rates as the major driver of stronger performance, as net interest income soared 49% year over year.

There were signs that JPMorgan is taking the threat of a recession seriously, though. The bank posted a $2.3 billion provision for credit losses, with charge-offs of $1.1 billion and a similarly sized build in net reserves to cover potential future losses. Moreover, although average loans were up 6% across the company, deposits fell 8%, with a particularly large 16% drop in deposits in the commercial banking segment.

JPMorgan is optimistic about its prospects, with CEO Jamie Dimon noting that neither consumers nor businesses have given up on spending. That raises some hope that the U.S. economy could avoid a recession, but JPMorgan appears ready for whatever may come.

Wells Fargo gets a lift

Shares of Wells Fargo climbed 3%. Its first-quarter earnings report was also generally positive.

Wells Fargo reported a 17% rise in total revenue from year-ago levels. That helped lead to profit growth of 32% year over year to $4.99 billion, and the $1.23 per share in earnings was better than many had expected.

As with JPMorgan, Wells Fargo's internal metrics were mixed. Average loans climbed by more than $50 billion to $949 billion, but deposits plunged by more than $100 billion to $1.36 trillion. Still, returns on equity improved, as did the bank's common equity tier 1 ratio. Wells set aside $1.2 billion as a provision for credit losses, covering $564 million in net charge-offs and allowing for an even larger build in loan loss reserves.

Wells has had to take major steps to resolve controversies regarding its past business practices, and worries about unrealized bond losses and commercial real estate loans remain front and center. Nevertheless, shareholders seem a bit more comfortable with where Wells is now, and they're hopeful the bank can keep recovering.

Citigroup inches higher

Citigroup shares had the smallest rise among big banks, climbing just 1% after its quarterly report. However, many of the numbers the bank reported were similar to its peers.

Citigroup posted revenue of $21.4 billion, up 12% due largely to higher net interest income from higher interest rates and a larger loan balance. Net income climbed as well, although the $4.61 billion Citigroup earned worked out to $2.19 per share, just 8% higher than in the year-ago quarter.

Improvements in common equity tier 1 ratios and book value were highlights for the bank. Deposits were largely flat compared to year-ago levels, although net credit losses climbed by nearly half year over year to $1.3 billion.

Overall, what Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan Chase said gave investors confidence that the banking system remains in good condition. That might change when smaller regional banks start to release their own earnings reports, but for now, Wall Street appears to be in a good mood about the financial sector.