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Bank of America Corp.: Q1 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q1 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 15 April 2026: press release. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Net income and EPS both rose: Net income rose 17% and diluted EPS rose 25% to $1.11 from $0.89 a year earlier. Source
  • Revenue up 7% on four drivers: Revenue, net of interest expense, rose 7% to $30.3 billion on higher NII, sales and trading, asset management fees and investment banking fees. Source
  • Global Markets sales and trading up 13%: Sales and trading revenue rose 13%, or 12% excluding net DVA gains; Global Markets net income was $2.0 billion. Source
  • Efficiency ratio improved about 170 bps: The efficiency ratio improved about 170 bps year over year, with management citing investment for growth alongside expense discipline. Source
  • Card seasonality lifted charge-offs: Net charge-offs rose from the prior quarter largely on credit card seasonality, while the card charge-off rate fell year over year. Source
  • Shareholder returns of $9.3 billion: The company returned $9.3 billion to shareholders, with about $2.0 billion in common dividends and about $7.2 billion in share repurchases. Source
  • CET1 capital dipped $1.7 billion: CET1 capital was $200 billion, down $1.7 billion from the prior quarter, and the Standardized ratio is described as well above the regulatory minimum. Source

“Net income of $8.6 billion reflected the team’s disciplined execution.”

Chair and CEO Brian Moynihan

Earnings and revenue growth

  • Net income and EPS both rose: Net income rose 17% and diluted EPS rose 25% to $1.11 from $0.89 a year earlier. Source
  • Revenue up 7% on four drivers: Revenue, net of interest expense, rose 7% to $30.3 billion on higher NII, sales and trading, asset management fees and investment banking fees. Source
  • Operating leverage reached 2.9%: Operating leverage was 2.9%, the gap between revenue growth and noninterest expense growth. Source
  • Returns on equity rose: Return on average common shareholders’ equity was 12.0% and on tangible common equity 16.0%, compared with 10.4% and 14.0% a year earlier. Source

Results by business segment

  • Consumer Banking revenue up 5%: Consumer Banking net income was $3.1 billion, with revenue up 5% driven primarily by higher NII; return on allocated capital was 27%. Source
  • GWIM revenue up 12%: GWIM revenue rose 12% and net income was $1.3 billion, with asset management fees up 15%. Source
  • Global Banking investment fees up 21%: Global Banking net income was $2.1 billion, and treasury service charges rose 10%. Source
  • Global Markets sales and trading up 13%: Sales and trading revenue rose 13%, or 12% excluding net DVA gains; Global Markets net income was $2.0 billion. Source
  • Equities rose 30%, FICC up 2%: Equities revenue rose 30% on client activity, while FICC revenue rose 2%, or 1% excluding net DVA. Source

“We believe our diversified business model, durable balance sheet and commitment to Responsible Growth continue to be sources of strength.”

Executive Vice President and CFO Alastair Borthwick

Client balances and investment assets

  • GWIM client balances up 10%: GWIM client balances rose 10% on market valuations and positive net client flows; AUM flows were $20 billion. Source
  • Consumer investment assets up 15%: Consumer investment assets rose 15% to $573 billion, including $20 billion of net client flows from new and existing clients. Source
  • Checking accounts kept growing: The company held 38.5 million consumer checking accounts, 91% of them primary, and added about 100K net new accounts this quarter. Source

Products, customers and digital usage

  • Digitally enabled sales reached 71%: Digitally-enabled sales were 71% of total sales, with 4.3 billion digital logins and 50 million active digital banking users. Source
  • Small Business lending grew 5%: Average Small Business loans grew 5%, and management cited a No. 1 Small Business Lender ranking for 19 consecutive quarters. Source
  • Card spend up 7%: Combined credit and debit card spend rose 7%, and payments of $1.1 trillion rose 5%. Source

Costs and efficiency

  • Noninterest expense up 4%: Noninterest expense was $18.5 billion, up 4%, driven by revenue-related expenses and investments in people and technology. Source
  • Efficiency ratio improved about 170 bps: The efficiency ratio improved about 170 bps year over year, with management citing investment for growth alongside expense discipline. Source
  • Global Markets expense up 15%: Global Markets noninterest expense rose 15% on higher revenue-related expenses and investment in people and technology. Source

Credit quality and provisions

  • Card seasonality lifted charge-offs: Net charge-offs rose from the prior quarter largely on credit card seasonality, while the card charge-off rate fell year over year. Source
  • Card charge-off rate fell year over year: The credit card charge-off rate was 3.64%, down from 4.05% a year earlier and up from 3.40% in the prior quarter. Source
  • Commercial charge-offs rose: Commercial net charge-offs were $350 million, up $17 million from a year earlier and $55 million from the prior quarter. Source
  • Reserves released on a net basis: The company recorded a net reserve release of $72 million, compared with a net reserve build of $21 million in 4Q25. Source
  • Criticized exposure declined: Commercial reservable criticized utilized exposure was $24.3 billion, down $3.3 billion from a year earlier and $409 million from the prior quarter. Source

Capital, liquidity and shareholder returns

  • Shareholder returns of $9.3 billion: The company returned $9.3 billion to shareholders, with about $2.0 billion in common dividends and about $7.2 billion in share repurchases. Source
  • CET1 capital dipped $1.7 billion: CET1 capital was $200 billion, down $1.7 billion from the prior quarter, and the Standardized ratio is described as well above the regulatory minimum. Source
  • Book value per share up 7%: Book value per common share rose 7% to $38.66, and tangible book value per common share rose 7% to $28.84. Source
  • Global Liquidity Sources eased slightly: Average Global Liquidity Sources were $960 billion, down from $975 billion in the prior quarter. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Net interest margin Source2.07% (net interest yield, FTE basis)
Net interest income Source$15.7 billion (GAAP); $15.9 billion FTE
Loans and loan growth Source$1.19 trillion average; up 9%
Deposits and deposit costs Source$2.02 trillion average; up 3%
Provision for credit losses Source$1.3 billion
Net charge-offs Source$1.4 billion; 0.48% ratio
Nonperforming assets Source$5.8 billion nonperforming loans and leases
CET1 ratio Source11.2% (Standardized)
Efficiency ratio Source61%

Risks management discussed

  • External: Management said it remains watchful of evolving risks while seeing healthy client activity and stable asset quality. Source
  • External: Lower interest rates partly offset net interest income growth from higher deposit and loan balances and fixed-rate asset repricing. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Ahead: Management said net interest income was better than it had expected for the quarter. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.