The negatives Margins are still dismal. Asset growth is minimal. Three components of other income – factoring commissions, gains on sales of leasing equipment, and fee revenue – were essentially unchanged compared to the year-ago quarter and declined $23 million sequentially. Operating expenses are increasing. Consensus estimates for first quarter earnings were $0.86, the company missed by $0.05. CIT remains bound by a "written agreement" with the Federal Reserve before it can return any capital. On the earnings call, CIT Group Inc. (NYSE:CIT) CFO Scott Parker acknowledged in response to a question from analyst Sameer Gokhale of Janney Capital that the company has increasingly provided financing for so-called "dividend recap" deals. Those are deals in which private equity firms borrow money to pay themselves a dividend, rather than reinvesting in the business. This is perceived as risky because it increases debt without adding anything that might contribute to future profits.