JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup reported third-quarter 2026 results on October 13, with gains in trading and wealth management alongside revenue shortfalls against analyst forecasts at JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
Goldman reported earnings of $17.01 per share, almost 30% above the $13.09 consensus cited by Investing.com. Reuters reported strength in Goldman’s equities business alongside lower fixed-income, currency and commodities revenue.
Trading, dealmaking and wealth revenue grow
JPMorgan said markets revenue increased 15% from a year earlier. Equity markets revenue rose 49%, while fixed-income markets revenue fell 4%. Its investment banking fees increased 14%, although they were down 8% from the preceding quarter.
Citi reported fixed-income markets revenue of $4.4 billion, up 4% year over year, and equity markets revenue of $1.7 billion, up 14%. The bank attributed the equities increase partly to growth in prime services.
Citi also reported 9% growth in investment banking revenue, driven by a 77% increase in equity capital markets. Advisory and debt capital markets revenue declined. Wells Fargo said its mergers and acquisitions revenue increased 30%.
Wealth management contributed further growth. JPMorgan reported asset and wealth management revenue of $6.9 billion, up 14%, with assets under management rising 13% to $5.2 trillion.
Wells Fargo said wealth and investment management revenue grew 12%. Citi chief executive Jane Fraser described growth across all three wealth businesses. Separately, Citi’s services division reported revenue of $6.6 billion, up 15%.
Revenue misses despite larger loan books
JPMorgan reported revenue of $50.17 billion, below the $51.23 billion analyst forecast cited by The Wall Street Journal. Its reported earnings were $5.57 per share. Adjusted earnings, excluding investment securities losses, were $5.75 per share.
Wells Fargo reported revenue of $21.87 billion, below the $22.31 billion forecast cited by Reuters. Earnings reached $1.87 per share, exceeding the $1.85 consensus listed by MarketBeat.
Wells Fargo’s net interest income rose 5% to $12.52 billion, but missed the $12.63 billion forecast reported by Reuters. Its noninterest income was $9.35 billion. JPMorgan also reported a 6% increase in net interest income excluding its markets business.
Wells Fargo said average loans increased 11% to $1.03 trillion and average deposits rose 11% to $1.48 trillion. The bank’s revenue shortfall against forecasts therefore came alongside growth in both lending and deposits.
Expenses also varied. JPMorgan reported costs of $27.3 billion, up 12%. Citi’s reported operating expenses fell 2% to $13.95 billion, partly because a prior-year goodwill impairment did not recur. Excluding that earlier charge, Citi said expenses increased 3%.
Credit provisions and the AI outlook
JPMorgan said debit and credit card sales volume increased 10% year over year. It recorded $2.7 billion in credit costs, including $2.2 billion of net charge-offs and a $539 million net reserve build. Its card services net charge-off rate was 2.91%.
Wells Fargo’s provision for credit losses increased to $1.03 billion from $681 million a year earlier. Citi reported a common equity tier 1 capital ratio of 12.8% and book value per share of $115.61.
JPMorgan chief executive Jamie Dimon said the bank reduced share repurchases and believed it could deploy that capital at attractive returns over time. He identified persistent inflation and elevated asset prices among the economic risks.
Wells Fargo chief executive Charlie Scharf said investment in AI infrastructure, high employment and steady wage growth were outweighing economic risks.
During the earnings call, Scharf also dismissed concerns about substantial deposit movements driven by AI agents seeking higher returns, describing that prospect as distant. He said Wells Fargo was building agents itself and saw an opportunity to use them to improve customer service.