New York, Jan 13, 2026, 18:51 EST — After-hours
- Wells Fargo shares slipped roughly 1.5% in late Tuesday trading, mirroring a broader retreat in U.S. financial stocks.
- The bank is set to release its fourth-quarter results Wednesday before the market opens, with investors zeroing in on margins and forward guidance.
- The sector faces fresh pressure from a proposed 10% cap on credit-card interest rates.
Wells Fargo & Company shares dropped 1.5% to $93.56 in after-hours trading Tuesday, just ahead of the bank’s quarterly earnings release. Investors pared back their bets on U.S. financial stocks ahead of the report.
The timing is crucial. Major U.S. banks are now handing the market its earliest concrete glimpse of profit drivers for 2026, right as traders wrestle with how quickly borrowing costs might drop—and what impact that could have on bank earnings.
According to a Nasdaq report published Tuesday, analysts monitored by Zacks anticipate Wells Fargo will post earnings of $1.66 per share on roughly $21.6 billion in revenue.
Policy risk just got more complicated. President Donald Trump suggested a one-year 10% limit on credit-card interest rates starting Jan. 20. JPMorgan’s CFO Jeremy Barnum warned reporters it “would be very bad for consumers, very bad for the economy.” Reuters
U.S. stocks closed down Tuesday, dragged lower by financial shares amid investor concerns over the proposed credit-card cap. “Financials are getting hit by Trump’s credit-card proposal,” noted Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist at Ingalls & Snyder. Reuters
Inflation figures didn’t shift the broader rate discussion much but kept it simmering. U.S. consumer prices climbed 2.7% year-on-year in December, with core CPI at 2.6%, according to a Reuters analysis. The data supports the idea that the Federal Reserve can hold its ground for now — and possibly cut rates later if this trend continues.
Wells Fargo investors zero in on net interest income—the gap between what the bank earns on loans and pays out on deposits—and any changes in expense control. Returns are under the microscope, too, especially return on tangible common equity, which excludes intangibles. This metric has gained traction in bank valuations, according to a MarketWatch analysis.
Wells Fargo isn’t the only bank reporting Wednesday. Bank of America and Citigroup are set to release earnings too, making it a hectic day for the sector following JPMorgan’s kickoff to the season.
The bank no longer faces the long-standing Federal Reserve asset cap that had restricted its growth since 2018. In June 2025, the Fed removed that limit, enabling the lender to grow its balance sheet once more.
Yet risks remain. If rate cuts come quicker than anticipated, margins could tighten. Any hint of weaker credit or a sudden change in credit-card pricing rules might shake the belief that earnings growth will extend into 2026.
All eyes now turn to Wednesday’s report and the accompanying management commentary. Wells Fargo’s investor calendar pins the fourth-quarter earnings release for Jan. 14.
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