PNC Beats on Profit, Lifts Its 2026 Outlook and Raises the Dividend 18% as Loans Surge, but Revenue Slips Below Estimates
Adjusted earnings of $5.09 a share topped the $4.91 estimate and tangible returns reached 18.3%, while revenue of $6.56 billion fell about $50 million short. PNC now expects total revenue to rise about 13.7% in 2026.
PNC Financial Services (PNC) reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $5.09 a share on Thursday, beating the $4.91 analysts expected, and raised its 2026 guidance on strong loan growth. Revenue of $6.56 billion was about $50 million below the $6.61 billion consensus and fell 5% from the second quarter, which included large one-time gains. Net income was $2.1 billion, or $4.97 a share on a reported basis, and the board has lifted the quarterly dividend 18% to $2.00.
The quarter
| Measure | Q3 2026 | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS | $5.09 | $4.85 in Q2; estimate $4.91; GAAP EPS $4.97 vs $4.35 a year ago |
| Net income | $2.10B | Up 2% from Q2 and 15% from a year ago |
| Total revenue | $6.56B | Down 5% from Q2, up 11% from a year ago; estimate $6.61B |
| Net interest income | $4.21B | Up 2% from Q2 and 15% from a year ago |
| Net interest margin | 2.94% | Down 2 bps from Q2, up 15 bps from a year ago |
| Fee income | $2.14B | Down 6% from Q2, up 4% from a year ago |
| Noninterest expense, adjusted | $3.72B | Down 3% from Q2, up 8% from a year ago |
| Provision for credit losses | $189M | $191M in Q2 |
The quarter-over-quarter revenue drop reflects a tough comparison: PNC's second quarter included a $448 million gain from a Visa share exchange, partly offset by a $139 million securities loss. Fee income also felt integration-related fee waivers on card and cash management after the FirstBank conversion, management said. Pretax integration costs were $36 million, down from $127 million in the second quarter.
Loans, deposits and credit
| Item | Q3 2026 | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Average loans | $372.2B | Up 2% from Q2 and 14% from a year ago |
| Period-end loans | $378.8B | Up about $11B in the quarter |
| Average deposits | $461.2B | Up 1% from Q2; period-end $466.4B, up 4% |
| Net charge-offs | $257M | 0.28% of loans, including $35M tied to a student loan transfer |
| Nonperforming loans | $2.19B | 0.58% of loans, up from 0.55% |
| Allowance for credit losses | 1.42% | 1.48% in Q2 |
| CET1 ratio (estimated) | 9.8% | 9.9% in Q2; 10.7% a year ago |
| Tangible book value per share | $107.64 | Down 3% from Q2; flat from a year ago |
Commercial and industrial loans grew 4% from the second quarter and commercial real estate balances also rose 4%, while consumer loans slipped 1%. About $15 billion of this year's loan growth came from the FirstBank acquisition and more than $30 billion was organic. Management said nonperforming loans rose mainly because of previously reserved commercial real estate office exposures and one large commercial credit, and delinquencies improved to 0.34% of loans from 0.39%. PNC returned $1.4 billion to shareholders, including about $800 million in dividends and $560 million in buybacks, and expects fourth-quarter repurchases to be similar. The board declared a $2.00 quarterly dividend, up from $1.70, payable November 5.
Outlook: guidance raised
| 2026 vs 2025 | New guidance | Prior |
|---|---|---|
| Total revenue | Up about 13.7% | Up about 13% |
| Average loans | Up about 13.5% | Up about 12.5% |
| Net interest income | Up about 15.5% | Up 15% to 15.5% |
| Noninterest income | Up about 10.5% | Up about 9% |
| Noninterest expense | Up about 9.5% | Up about 8.5% |
For the fourth quarter, PNC expects net interest income up about 4% from the third quarter, fee income up about 3.5% with capital markets fees up about 15%, adjusted expenses up about 5%, and a net interest margin of 3% or higher. Management also said net interest income in 2027 should exceed the annualized 2026 run rate by $1.0 billion to $1.1 billion, mostly from fixed-rate assets repricing higher. The detailed guidance figures are from Investing.com's call summary.
PNC's base case assumes GDP growth above 2% and a steady unemployment rate, with the Federal Reserve raising rates twice more, by 25 basis points each in December 2026 and March 2027, to a 4.25%–4.5% range. That fits the backdrop in our CPI report. Management said it is on track for $350 million of 2026 cost reductions from a continuous-improvement program that is separate from the FirstBank integration, and highlighted capital markets fees up 40% and treasury management revenue up 8% so far this year.
The stock
PNC traded at $214.78, down 0.5%, at noon ET on Thursday, according to StockAnalysis.com, after closing Wednesday at $215.80. It had been up about 0.7% in premarket trading. The stock sits within a 52-week range of $176.88 to $258.96, and the new dividend works out to a yield of about 3.7%. PNC's results follow other bank reports covered in our Schwab recap.
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