Haverhill Financial Research · News · October 14, 2026
The short version
Bank of America earned $6.9 billion in the third quarter, or 91 cents a share, down from $8.3 billion and $1.04 a year earlier. Most of the drop came from one item: a $1.2 billion charge for civil penalties under consent orders with the OCC and FinCEN over its anti-money-laundering and sanctions compliance. The penalty isn't tax-deductible, so it cost the full 17 cents a share. Take it out and the bank earned $8.1 billion, or $1.08 a share.
The numbers
| Measure | Q3 2026 | Change |
Revenue Net of interest expense | $29.96B | +3% |
Net income $8.1B excluding the penalty | $6.93B | −17% |
Diluted earnings per share $1.08 excluding the penalty | $0.91 | $1.04 a year ago |
Net interest income | $16.45B | +8% |
Noninterest expense $18.5B excluding the penalty, +7% | $19.72B | +14% |
Net charge-off ratio Share of loans written off, annualized | 0.44% | 0.47% a year ago |
Sales and trading revenue Equities +11%, FICC −17% | $5.08B | −5% |
Investment banking fees | $1.80B | −11% |
Common equity tier 1 ratio Standardized, preliminary | 10.9% | 11.6% a year ago |
Net income, third quarter 2025 to third quarter 2026. Source: Bank of America earnings supplements.
What the charge was for
The orders, announced on October 13, cover the bank's Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money-laundering and sanctions programs. Bank of America booked the penalties in noninterest expense, which is why costs jumped 14%. Excluding the charge, expenses rose 7%, still faster than revenue. The bank's reported efficiency ratio was 66%, or 62% on an adjusted basis.
Where the money came from
Lending did the work. Net interest income rose 8% to $16.4 billion as average loans grew 6% to $1.23 trillion. Deposits grew more slowly, up 2% to $2.02 trillion, and the net interest yield widened 15 basis points to 2.16%.
Wealth management had its best quarter in a while. Global Wealth & Investment Management earned $1.54 billion, up 22%. Consumer Banking rose 2% to $3.52 billion.
Wall Street businesses slipped. Global Markets net income fell 25% to $1.24 billion. Equities trading rose 11% to about $2.5 billion, but fixed income, currencies and commodities fell 17%, and investment banking fees dropped 11% to $1.8 billion. That stands out in a week when JPMorganChase and Goldman Sachs reported strong trading.
Credit was quiet. Net charge-offs were $1.35 billion, or 0.44% of loans, and the bank set aside $1.27 billion for future losses, both slightly lower than a year ago.
Capital
Bank of America returned $8.3 billion to shareholders: $6.0 billion of buybacks and $2.2 billion of dividends, with the quarterly dividend at 32 cents, up from 28 cents. The average diluted share count is about 5% lower than a year ago. Its common equity tier 1 ratio fell to an estimated 10.9% from 11.2% in June.
What we will be watching
Whether the penalty is the end of it. Consent orders usually come with remediation work, and that work costs money for a while.
Fixed income trading. A 17% decline is large for a business that peers grew or held steady this quarter.
The pace of buybacks. With the capital ratio drifting down, $6 billion a quarter may not last.
Our take
The headline number is ugly, but the core of the bank looks fine. Loans and lending income are growing, wealth management is strong and credit is behaving. The penalty is a one-time hit to earnings. The cost that matters more is the expense creep that tends to follow a compliance order, and the weaker trading desk.
Sources and disclosures
Every company figure comes from Bank of America's own filings: the third-quarter 2026 earnings release, earnings presentation and supplemental information, furnished to the SEC on Form 8-K.
Disclosures. Haverhill Financial Research is a publisher of general financial commentary. This article is not personalized investment advice and does not consider any reader's financial situation; readers should do their own research. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Company figures and guidance can change. The author of this post does not hold positions in Bank of America or the other companies named. Data as of October 14, 2026.
