First Union's new chief executive, G. Kennedy Thompson, in his first presentation to Wall Street since assuming the CEO duties in April, outlined plans for First Union to shed ailing operations and to refocus on three core businesses: retail banking, investment banking and retail stock-brokerage and asset management.

He said that based on a six-month review of operations, those three businesses are targeted to post earnings growth of 10% to 12% annually once the restructuring is complete.

Despite revealing the long-awaited plans to turn around the Charlotte, N.C., bank's financial performance, analysts and investors remained unconvinced that First Union has fixed its credit and earnings problems. Several analysts cut their estimates for First Union's earnings in 2000 and 2001.

In 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange Monday, shares of First Union rose 6.25 cents to $27.875.

"Ken did exactly what he needed to in presenting a credible face on First Union for the first time in three years," said money manager Harold Schroeder at Carlson Capital, Dallas. But Schroeder and other analysts said that after lowering earnings estimates three times in 1999 and guiding down estimates for this year and next, First Union is out of chances after Monday's announcement.

Thompson acknowledged that the bank must do more to win back Wall Street. "We have done a very thorough housecleaning," Thompson said. "We don't expect any further restructuring events in the future."

First Union plans to record a charge totaling $2.8 billion, the bulk of which will be taken in the second quarter. The remainder will be divided between the third and fourth quarters, and possibly the first quarter of next year.

The largest part of the charge, $2.6 billion, results from the shutdown of Sacramento, Calif.-based Money Store, a lender to consumers with poor credit histories. The restructuring includes laying off 2,350 employees. First Union acquired Money Store in June 1998 for $2.1 billion under Edward E. Crutchfield Jr., then the bank's CEO. Thompson replaced him as CEO in April, but Crutchfield remains First Union's chairman.

Also included in the restructuring plan is a sale of the bank's consumer and commercial credit-card portfolios and its mortgage-servicing division. The bank is selling about 90 branches that have about $3 billion in deposits, leaving the bank with about 2,200 branches.

To improve the quality of its loan portfolio, the bank plans to sell $500 million of non-performing assets and another $400 million in poorly performing loans.

But the bank left concerns on two fronts: credit quality and the ability to boost earnings. Some analysts were disappointed that First Union didn't take the opportunity to increase loan-loss reserves.

The bank said that excluding the charge, it will report second-quarter earnings of between 72 cents and 74 cents a share. Wall Street had expected 85 cents.

Analysts cut their estimates for both 2000 and 2001. The estimate for 2000, $3.47, was cut to the $2.85-to-$2.90 range. The 2001 estimate was $3.80. Some analysts cut estimates to the $2.75-to-$2.80 range.