PNC Raises 2026 Outlook on Strong Lending, Record Fee Revenue
PNC Financial Services Group Inc. (NYSE:PNC) reported second-quarter 2026 results on Wednesday that beat Wall Street estimates and raised its full-year revenue outlook, driven by higher net interest income, record fee revenue and commercial loan growth following its FirstBank acquisition.
Adjusted earnings were $4.85 per share, topping the analyst consensus estimate of $4.43. Revenue increased to $6.88 billion from $5.66 billion a year earlier, ahead of the consensus estimate of $6.50 billion.
The bank raised its full-year 2026 revenue outlook to about $26.10 billion from about $25.64 billion, above the Wall Street estimate of $25.92 billion.
Net Interest Income, Fee Revenue Increase
Net income rose to $2.06 billion, or $4.81 per diluted share, from $1.64 billion, or $3.85 per share, a year earlier. Adjusted earnings excluded integration costs and certain one-time items.
Net interest income increased 4% from the first quarter to $4.11 billion as commercial loan growth and higher noninterest-bearing deposits offset funding pressures. Net interest margin expanded one basis point to 2.96%.
Noninterest income climbed 26% sequentially to $2.77 billion. Fee income rose 10% to a record $2.28 billion, supported by strong capital markets and advisory activity.
Noninterest expense increased 9% from the prior quarter to $4.10 billion, reflecting FirstBank integration costs, a contribution to the PNC Foundation and higher business activity. Provision for credit losses declined to $191 million from $210 million in the first quarter.
Retail Banking earned $1.75 billion during the quarter, while Corporate & Institutional Banking generated $1.59 billion. Asset Management Group reported earnings of $135 million and discretionary assets under management of $247 billion.
FirstBank Integration, Credit Quality
PNC completed the integration of FirstBank on June 22, converting about 780,000 customers, more than 1,620 employees and 95 branches across Colorado and Arizona to PNC Bank. Second-quarter results included a full quarter of acquisition-related impact.
The bank recorded $127 million of FirstBank integration costs during the quarter. It also recognized a $448 million gain from monetizing half of its Visa Class B-2 shares, largely offset by a $140 million PNC Foundation contribution, a $139 million securities repositioning loss and an $85 million Visa derivative fair value adjustment. Combined, those items reduced net income by $15 million, or 4 cents per share.
Average loans increased 4% from the prior quarter to $363.2 billion, led by commercial lending, while average deposits were stable at $457.0 billion. Average noninterest-bearing deposits increased 4%.
Credit quality improved during the quarter. Net loan charge-offs declined to $226 million from $253 million in the first quarter. The decline reflected $45 million of FirstBank-acquired loan charge-offs recognized in the first quarter.
Delinquencies fell 8% to $1.4 billion, while nonperforming loans declined 10% to about $2.0 billion. The allowance for credit losses stood at $5.5 billion, or 1.48% of total loans.
PNC ended the quarter with a Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio of 9.9% and returned $1.3 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. Earlier this month, the bank increased its quarterly common dividend by 18% to $2.00 per share.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William Demchak said the quarter reflected disciplined execution, a successful FirstBank integration and a strong capital position that supports customers, shareholders and communities.
PNC Price Action: PNC Financial Services shares were up 0.19% at $247.45 at the time of publication on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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