New York, January 16, 2026, 11:24 EST — Regular session
- Bank of America shares were up about 0.2% in late morning trading.
- The bank beat fourth-quarter profit estimates but investors have zeroed in on its net interest income outlook.
- Traders are watching the Fed’s January policy meeting and fresh details on a proposed cap on credit card rates.
Bank of America Corp shares were up 0.2% at $52.71 in late morning trade on Friday, a modest bounce after a choppy reaction to the bank’s quarterly report earlier this week.
The focus now is on rates, not the headline earnings beat. Investors are already looking toward the Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting on January 27-28, which is a big input into how banks price loans and what they pay depositors. 1
On Wednesday, Bank of America shares fell nearly 3.2% after the bank said it expected first-quarter net interest income (NII) — the difference between what it earns on loans and pays out on deposits — to rise 7% and reiterated a 5% to 7% NII growth forecast for fiscal 2026. “Banks have been very strong to start the year, and as these numbers come in, markets are taking a little time to digest,” said Jake Johnston, deputy chief investment officer at Advisors Asset Management. Chief Financial Officer Alastair Borthwick added: “We’ve seen growth in all of the consumer borrowing categories.” 2
The lender reported fourth-quarter net income of $7.6 billion, or $0.98 per share, on revenue of $28.4 billion. Net interest income rose 10% from a year earlier to $15.8 billion, and sales and trading revenue climbed 10% to $4.5 billion; the bank also said it returned $8.4 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. CEO Brian Moynihan struck an upbeat tone, saying: “While any number of risks continue, we are bullish on the U.S. economy in 2026.” 3
In its earnings presentation, Bank of America pointed to higher Global Markets activity and fixed-rate asset repricing as drivers of the quarter’s net interest income, partly offset by the impact of lower interest rates. The deck also showed year-over-year loan growth across portfolios and segments, a datapoint investors have leaned on as a read on demand and credit appetite. 4
Bank of America’s results landed in a week when peers also highlighted loan growth, but the sector was hit by new policy noise. JPMorgan’s average loans rose 9% and Citigroup’s average loans climbed 7%, Reuters reported, while Wells Fargo and Citi signaled more job cuts; the S&P 500 bank index slid about 2% in Wednesday afternoon trading as investors weighed fears around a proposed 10% cap on credit card interest rates. “As banks pursue growth in 2026, they’ll remain laser-focused on managing a complex risk landscape,” said Peter Torrente, KPMG’s U.S. banking sector leader. 5
But the politics are the wildcard. Big banks have flagged growing tension with President Donald Trump over his call to cap credit card interest rates and over scrutiny tied to the Federal Reserve, a mix that could tighten the rules around consumer lending or chill risk appetite. 6
Rate policy is another moving piece. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said this week that “policy is in a good place” and that calibration should be “deliberate,” with markets widely expecting the Fed to hold the policy rate in the 3.50%-3.75% range at the January 27-28 meeting. 7
The next hard catalyst is January 28, when the Fed is scheduled to release its policy decision at 2:00 p.m. and hold a press conference at 2:30 p.m. In the meantime, Bank of America investors will keep watching deposit costs, loan growth and any concrete details — or lack of them — on how a credit card rate cap would work. 8
