US Bank Q2 2026 Earnings: Equities and IB Revenues Boom

Large-cap US bank stocks have performed well in 2026. Fueled by a lucrative combination of blockbuster IPOs, surging trading volumes amid equity market volatility, and steadily rising assets under management, new all-time highs have been achieved within the sector.

In this article, we are going to look at how these financial institutions performed in the second quarter of 2026. From record-breaking profits to surging investment banking fees, here’s how the industry’s heavyweights fared amid a highly favorable backdrop for banks.

JP Morgan

For Q2, JP Morgan¹ reported revenue of $58.02 billion (+27% year-over-year) and earnings per share of $6.14 per share (+17%). These figures were above estimates of $50.19 billion and $5.85².

While performance across the bank was strong in Q2, Equity Markets was a standout. Here, revenue was up 86% year-over-year to $6.0 billion amid a surge in trading activity.

In its Investment Banking division, revenues jumped 45% to $3.9 billion. Meanwhile, in Asset & Wealth Management, revenue was up 19% to $6.9 billion.

Notably, CEO Jamie Dimon said that the bank is leveraging artificial intelligence and now has nearly 1,000 AI use cases in motion across risk, fraud, marketing, and document review³. He added that in certain roles, the technology has helped the bank cut up to 40% of jobs.

Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs⁴ posted revenue of $20.34 billion (+39%) and earnings per share of $20.98 (+92%) for the second quarter. Going into the print, analysts had been looking for $16.13 billion and $14.48², so this was a significant beat.

Goldman was expected to see strong growth in its investment banking fees given its status as the lead underwriter for the SpaceX IPO. And it didn’t disappoint – fees here jumped 55% year-over-year to $3.4 billion.

However, it wasn’t just an investment banking story. In Equities, revenue amounted to $7.42 billion, an increase of 72% year-over-year, while in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities (FICC), revenues were $4.59 billion, 32% higher than in the second quarter of 2025.

On the earnings call, CEO David Solomon noted that Goldman’s deals backlog is at its highest level in five years⁵. This bodes well for revenue in future quarters.

Bank of America

Bank of America⁶ delivered revenue of $31.7 billion (+15%) and EPS of $1.21 (+34%) for the quarter. Analysts had been expecting $30.72 billion and $1.13².

In its Global Markets division, Equities revenue was up 70% year-over-year to $3.6 billion. Meanwhile, in its Global Banking division, Investment Banking fees were up 50% to $2.1 billion.

As for its Wealth and Investment Management division, revenue here was $6.9 billion, up 16%. At the end of the quarter, AUM was $2.3 trillion, an increase of 17% from the second quarter of 2025.

In the earnings report, CEO Brian Moynihan noted that in the near term, the bank’s pipeline remains strong. He added that commercial borrowing has picked up recently.

Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo⁷ posted revenue of $22.62 billion (+9%) and EPS of $2.00 (+25%). Estimates here were $21.84 billion and $1.72².

In the firm’s Corporate and Investment Banking segment, Equities revenue was up 64% year-over-year to $635 million. Meanwhile, Investment Banking revenue was up 36% to $628 million.

Turning to its Wealth and Investment Management division, revenue was $3.9 billion, up 13%. At the end of the period, total company-wide client assets were $2.7 billion, 15% higher year-over-year.

On Wells Fargo’s earnings call, CEO Charlie Scharf said that the group’s investments in technology have improved productivity⁸. Recently, it launched a new generative AI-powered suite of tools for financial advisors to help advisors better serve their clients.

Citi

Citi’s revenue and earnings per share came in at $24.77 billion (+14%) and $3.15 (+61%) respectively⁹. Analysts had been anticipating $23.74 billion and $2.74².

For Citi, Equities Markets was a highlight. Here, revenue surged 45% year-over-year to $2.3 billion.

Investment Banking was another strong area, however. Revenues here were up 44% to $1.55 billion.

On the back of this strong performance, CEO Jane Fraser said that the bank will increase its dividend by 12%. It has also launched a $30 billion share buyback.

Morgan Stanley

Finally, Morgan Stanley¹⁰ posted revenue of $21.3 billion (+27%) and EPS of $3.46 per diluted share (+62%). This was another big beat; analysts had been expecting $19.64 billion and $2.94¹¹.

In its Institutional Securities division, Equity revenues were up 69% year-over-year to a record $6.3 billion. Investment Banking revenues were up 58% to $2.4 billion.

In Wealth Management, revenue came in at $8.9 billion, up 14%. During the quarter, this division added a record $148 billion in net new assets, with total client assets across Wealth and Investment Management reaching the $10 trillion milestone.

On the earnings call, CFO Sharon Yeshaya said the investment banking outlook remains constructive, with healthy pipelines and broad-based client dialogue. She added that global activity is building.

Diversified Exposure to Bank Stocks

Overall, it was a blockbuster quarter for the US large-cap banks. Across the board, equity trading and investment banking revenues were up significantly while wealth management revenues also climbed higher.

It’s worth pointing out that all of these US bank stocks can be found in the Themes Global Systemically Important Banks ETF (GSIB). This provides access to the 28 publicly-traded global banks that have been identified as “systemically important” by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS).

Footnotes:

¹JPMorgan Chase & Co., 2Q26 Earnings Press Release, as of July 14, 2026

²CNBC, Bank earnings takeaways: From Goldman Sachs’ SpaceX IPO fees to JPMorgan’s AI job cuts, as of July 15, 2026

³The Next Web, Dimon says AI already eliminated 30 to 40 percent of jobs in some JPMorgan divisions, as of July 14, 2026

⁴The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Goldman Sachs Reports 2026 Second Quarter Earnings Per Common Share of $20.98 and Annualized Return on Common Equity of 23.5%, as of July 14, 2026

⁵MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley Q2 Earnings Call Highlights, as of July 15, 2026

⁶Bank of America Corporation, Q2 2026 Earnings Release, as of July 14, 2026

⁷Wells Fargo & Company, Q2 2026 news release, as of July 14, 2026

⁸Pymnts, Wells Fargo Wealth Unit Drives Productivity Boom With New AI Suite, as of July 14, 2026

⁹Citigroup Inc, Second Quarter 2026 Press Release, as of July 14, 2026

¹⁰Morgan Stanley, Morgan Stanley Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Results, as of July 15, 2026

¹¹CNBC, Morgan Stanley posts record quarterly revenue and profit as equities trading surges 69%, as of July 15, 2026