U.S. stocks were higher in morning trading on Friday, boosted by bank stocks after better-then-expected quarterly profits from Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan, which bode well for the rest of the earnings season.

Bank of America jumped 2.1 percent to $23.41, their highest since the financial crisis. JPMorgan surged 2.2 percent at a record high of $88.17 and Wells Fargo gained 3.1 percent to $56.20.

Seven of the 11 major S&P sectors were higher, with the financial index's 1.04 percent rise leading the advancers. The KBW Bank index was up 2 percent, set for their best day since Dec. 1.

The combined profit of S&P 500 companies is estimated to have risen 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter, largely helped by financial companies, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

"There is a lot of optimism regarding the financial sector but any kind of cautious statement from them might cause a bit of a pullback," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.

"All the changes that are being proposed for the sector is going to take some time, it's not going to happen right away."

U.S. stocks overall have been on the rise since the election on optimism that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's policies to boost infrastructure spending and reform corporate taxes will benefit the economy.

The S&P financial sector has jumped about 17 percent since the election, outpacing the S&P 500's 6.1 percent rise, boosted by hopes of deregulation and increased interest rates.

But, analysts fear the market has run too far too soon, with Trump's policies expected to hit legislature hurdles, and with stock valuations stretched.

Blackrock Chief Executive Larry Fink told CNBC that if the roll out of growth initiatives by Trump are slower, then the markets are ahead of themselves.

Shares of the world's largest asset manager were up 1.7 percent at $384.56 after the company reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit.

Highlighting bank earnings:

- Wells Fargo & Co., the third-largest U.S. bank by assets, said it believes it has reimbursed the customers it needs to in order to comply with at least one of three settlements over a bogus-accounts scandal.

The San Francisco-based bank has been dealing with multiple lawsuits and a sharp drop in account openings after it settled with the Los Angeles City Attorney, the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in September over charges that its employees created 2 million accounts without customers' consent.

Chief Executive Timothy Sloan - who took over after John Stumpf resigned in the wake of the scandal - said he was pleased with the progress the bank has made in customer remediation, as well as its ongoing review of sales practices across the company.

The bank disclosed the new details as it posted its fifth straight decline in quarterly earnings on Friday, results that diverged from rivals JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Bank of America Corp (BAC.N). Both posted significantly higher earnings on Friday on the back of higher interest rates and market gains since the U.S. election in November.

Net income applicable to shareholders fell 6.4 percent to $4.87 billion, or 96 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, from $5.20 billion, or $1.00 per share, a year earlier.

It said it has made $3.2 million of refunds for potentially unauthorized accounts that incurred fees and charges, which it believes fulfills its repayment requirements under the settlement to the L.A. City Attorney.

It could not be determined whether the bank has reimbursement requirements under the other two settlements. A spokesman for Wells Fargo had no immediate response and a call to the Los Angeles City Attorney was not immediately returned.

- JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) reported a 24 percent rise in fourth-quarter profits on Friday, beating analyst expectations, as its Wall Street business benefited from a surge in trading activity following the U.S. election.

JPMorgan, the largest U.S. lender, said earnings rose to $6.7 billion, or $1.71 per share, from $5.4 billion, or $1.32 per share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding an atypical tax benefit, the bank earned $1.58 per share, well above the average analyst estimate of $1.44 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

JPMorgan has one of the largest global investment banks, which affects its earnings significantly when market activity picks up or declines. Along with other big banks, it was widely expected to benefit from a wave of trading in stocks and bonds following Donald Trump's stunning victory in the presidential election on Nov. 8.

Revenue from fixed-income trading – JPMorgan's most volatile business – rose 31 percent to $3.4 billion, while stock trading revenue increased 8 percent to $1.2 billion. Bank of America Corp (BAC.N), which reported results earlier on Friday, also said trading revenue surged last quarter.

In a statement discussing results, Chief Executive Jamie Dimon cited those market trends, as well as growth in deposits and loans, higher credit card sales and competitive gains in "virtually all" of JPMorgan's businesses. The bank also kept a tight lid on expenses, he said.

- BlackRock Inc, the world's biggest asset manager, reported better-than-expected quarterly profits on Friday as it clamped down on expenses and investors stormed into lower-cost funds to take advantage of a year-end rally.

Investors poured $88 billion into the company's market-tracking index investments and its iShares exchange-traded funds during the quarter, while pulling $546 million from funds managed actively by portfolio managers, underscoring a stark dichotomy of investors favoring lower-cost, passive investments.

"We're the big beneficiary of that change, but we'll be a beneficiary if there's a rebound into active," BlackRock CEO Larry Fink told Reuters.

- Bank of America Corp reported a 46.8 percent rise in quarterly profit on Friday, kicking off what is expected to be a strong period for U.S. banks following an upswing in market activity in the wake of the U.S. presidential election.

Also helped by a sharp fall in expenses, net income attributable to shareholders of the No. 2 U.S. bank by assets rose to $4.34 billion in the three months ended Dec. 31 from $2.95 billion a year earlier.

Earnings per share jumped to 40 cents from 27 cents. Analysts on an average had expected earnings of 38 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S, although it was not immediately clear if the reported figures were comparable.

Excluding a debt valuation adjustment, total sales and trading revenue rose 11 percent in the quarter, spurred by a surge in activity in stock and bond markets following Donald Trump's surprise victory on Nov. 8.