The stock of Bank of America climbed more than 4.21% today after the second-largest U.S. bank posted first-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ estimates. It affirmed its earlier guidance for higher net interest income in the fourth quarter.
Noninterest income grew across all segments, including banking by consumers who increased loan borrowing by 1% and credit and debit card spending by 4%, the Charlotte-based company said in a statement. Deposits and commercial lending rose across the bank while asset management fees climbed 15%, buoyed by the addition of 7,200 net new Merrill and Private Bank relationships.
“There’s a lot that could potentially change given the uncertainty around the tariffs and other policies and the future path of the economy,” CEO Brian Moynihan said on a conference call with analysts. So far this year, he added, “in the aggregate, the consumer keeps pushing money into the economy. As we look at what our business clients are telling us in the current setting, they remain profitable, liquid and have strong results.”
The bank’s global research team doesn’t expect the U.S. to slip into a recession this year, but it has lowered its growth estimate for gross domestic product, the CEO said.
In the first quarter, net income climbed 11% to $7.4 billion from a year earlier on revenue growth of 6% to $27.4 billion, according to a presentation.
The bank affirmed its projected net interest income of $15.5 billion to $15.7 billion in the fourth quarter. The difference between the interest earned and paid by banks, net interest income is a primary source of revenue and profit for financial institutions.
“Overall, this was a mostly in-line quarter,” Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analyst David Konrad wrote in a note. He rates Bank of America as “outperform.”
Before today, Bank of America shares had fallen about 17% this year, as stocks have tumbled globally due to uncertainties about tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Last week, JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told Fox Business he believes that a recession is “probably…a likely outcome” as some consumers and businesses spend less due to economic and stock market uncertainties.
