Report date: Friday, July 17, 2026
Event: 2026Q2 Earnings Call
Street expectations: $1.08 EPS on $5.24 billion of revenue
Truist enters 2Q26 with a reasonably constructive setup: management’s April outlook pointed to broadly stable revenue, modest sequential NII growth, resilient credit, and another large share-repurchase quarter. The stock closed at $53.27 on July 16, up roughly 10% since the June 15 leadership-transition announcement, so expectations have risen ahead of the release.
The central question is whether Truist can demonstrate that its improving return profile is durable without relying on a friendlier rate path. In 1Q, management lowered its 2026 NII-growth outlook because it no longer expected Fed rate cuts, but offset that pressure with better fee-income expectations, a lower tax rate, and a higher buyback target. A solid 2Q should therefore show progress in deposit gathering, commercial loan growth, fee momentum, and expense control—not merely EPS support from taxes and repurchases.
At its 1Q26 call, Truist guided to the following sequential trends:
| Metric | 2Q26 management outlook | Investor read-through |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | Roughly stable vs. 1Q | Implies about $5.2B |
| Net interest income | Up ~1% QoQ | Extra calendar day and higher client deposits should more than offset funding pressure |
| Noninterest income | Down ~1% QoQ | Lower investment-banking and trading revenue, partly offset by card/treasury fees and other income |
| Noninterest expense | Up 3%–4% QoQ | Implies approximately $3.07B–$3.10B, driven principally by personnel expense |
| Share repurchases | ~$1.2B | Critical support for per-share earnings and the capital-return case |
| 2026 NCO ratio | ~55 bps | A modest improvement from 1Q’s 61 bps is embedded in the full-year framework |
The revenue guide is broadly consistent with the current $5.24B consensus. The EPS comparison may be tighter: 1Q EPS was $1.09, but management explicitly forecasted higher seasonal personnel expense and lower capital-markets revenue in 2Q.
Truist’s 1Q taxable-equivalent NII fell 2.8% sequentially and NIM declined 5 bps to 3.02%, largely reflecting two fewer days and deposit-mix pressure. Management expects NII to rebound about 1% in 2Q, but the underlying issue is competition for deposits in Truist’s attractive, fast-growing Southeastern markets.
Investors should focus on:
A beat in NII or an improved full-year NII outlook would be the cleanest positive surprise. Conversely, another guide-down tied to deposit competition would likely overshadow otherwise adequate results.
Management still expects 3%–4% average loan growth in 2026, concentrated in commercial lending and higher-return consumer specialty businesses rather than lower-return categories such as indirect auto.
In 1Q, average loans rose 0.7% sequentially, driven by 1.8% commercial growth, while consumer balances declined 0.9%. Commercial and industrial loans, CRE, and expansion-market activity were areas of strength. For 2Q, investors should look for:
Commercial growth accompanied by deposits and fee business would be a higher-quality outcome than asset growth alone.
Fee income was a major 1Q positive. Investment banking and trading revenue increased 36% year over year to $372M, while wealth-management revenue rose 8%. Management expects investment-banking and trading income to decline sequentially in 2Q, so the hurdle is not another record quarter—it is whether the franchise retains its stronger year-over-year trajectory.
Areas to watch:
Truist has raised its full-year noninterest-income outlook to high-single-digit growth, from mid- to high-single digits previously. Maintaining that outlook—or raising it—would help offset any lingering skepticism around NII.
The expected 3%–4% sequential rise in expenses should not be viewed as a surprise; 1Q expense was unusually low due to lower incentive compensation, lower professional fees, and the absence of a prior-quarter legal accrual. Still, Truist’s credibility rests on producing positive operating leverage while investing in growth, technology, risk infrastructure, and AI-enabled productivity.
The relevant test is whether management can retain its full-year expense-growth guide of approximately 1.75% while continuing to grow revenue. A material expense overshoot, especially without a revenue upgrade, would weaken the path to the company’s stated return goals.
Asset quality remained sound in 1Q, though the NCO ratio rose to 61 bps from 57 bps in 4Q25. Management attributed part of the increase to commercial construction. Nonperforming loans rose modestly to 0.50% of loans; the increase in indirect-auto nonaccruals was primarily due to a change in classification criteria rather than a change in lifetime loss expectations.
Key items:
A stable reserve ratio and reaffirmed credit outlook would likely be sufficient. A meaningful provision build or deterioration outside the disclosed auto-classification change would be a negative surprise.
Capital return remains a meaningful part of the bull case. Truist repurchased $1.1B of common stock in 1Q and is targeting roughly $1.2B in 2Q, with full-year 2026 repurchases raised to $5B from $4B previously. Its CET1 ratio was 10.8% at March 31.
The release should clarify whether the company remains comfortable with that pace following 2Q balance-sheet growth and the latest regulatory-capital assumptions. Confirmation of the $5B plan, paired with a stable CET1 ratio, would reinforce management’s confidence in achieving its 14% 2026 ROTCE target and 15% 2027 ROTCE target.
This will be the final quarterly report before Michael Lyons becomes CEO and President on September 1, 2026. Bill Rogers is set to transition to Executive Chair through the 2027 annual meeting. Lyons previously led Fiserv and held senior roles at PNC, including president and head of corporate and institutional banking.
The earnings call is unlikely to introduce a wholesale change in guidance, but investors will listen for:
The CEO transition is a potential catalyst because it may increase conviction around execution; it is also a near-term source of uncertainty if messaging becomes less consistent with the established plan.
TFC does not need an exceptional 2Q to support the investment case. It needs to execute against its own framework: stable revenue, modest NII recovery, controlled expense growth, healthy commercial-led loan and deposit growth, stable credit, and continued large-scale repurchases.
With the stock up about 10% since the leadership announcement and the Street expecting $1.08 of EPS, the market is likely to reward a report that de-risks the second-half NIM trajectory and validates fee-income durability. The most consequential datapoints will be deposit mix/cost, NII and NIM guidance, credit normalization, and confidence in the $5B 2026 buyback plan.
This is an earnings preview for informational purposes, not investment advice.