Huntington Bancshares Incorporated

Ameriprise Financial's second-quarter earnings call featured analyst questions on a $19 billion client asset outflow from Comerica, expected to complete by the end of the third quarter, with Huntington Bank's onboarding anticipated to offset the loss. CEO Jim Cracchiolo and CFO Walter Berman addressed the timeline and magnitude of the exit, while also confirming that current capital return levels, including stock buybacks, are sustainable given ongoing free cash flow generation. Management reiterated that wealth and asset management margins are sustainable and that AI adoption is expected to drive further adviser productivity gains. The firm reported revenue of $4.90 billion, beating analyst estimates of $4.81 billion, and adjusted EPS of $11.07 versus estimates of $10.81. Analysts also questioned softness in total client flows relative to robust wrap flows, which management attributed to the Comerica exit and seasonal tax impacts, while noting increased activity in Columbia Threadneedle's SMAs and ETFs.

Huntington Bancshares affirmed its common dividend, declared several preferred dividends, reported second-quarter results, and completed a buyback tranche, as its share price eased to $16.84. The most followed narrative places the bank's fair value at $20.34 per share, implying a 17.2% undervaluation, while a separate discounted cash flow model values it at $33.15. Analyst consensus price target stands at $20.34, with estimates ranging from $18.60 to $22.50. The stock has returned negative 7.83% over the past week and negative 3.66% year to date, though its one-year total shareholder return is 5.38% and five-year total shareholder return is 47.31%.

Huntington Bancshares delivered a strong second quarter of 2026, with organic loan and deposit growth, higher revenue, and improving profitability, while management said the company is at an inflection point after completing the Cadence systems conversion. Average loans increased $15 billion, or 8.6%, sequentially, and average deposits increased $18.8 billion, or 9.2%, sequentially. Net interest income was $2.1 billion, up 8.5% sequentially, and value-added fee revenues rose more than 60% year over year. Management reaffirmed longer-term 2027 targets, including earnings per share of $1.90 to $1.93 and return on tangible common equity in the 18% to 19% range, even as it expects net interest income to come in toward the low end of guidance. The bank completed $310 million of its planned $550 million share repurchase program for 2026 year-to-date and expects to repurchase an additional $1.1 billion to $1.2 billion in 2027.

Merger-and-acquisition activity among U.S. regional banks reached $15.1 billion in the first six months of 2026, the highest level in seven years. Several large deals that were announced in 2025 closed early this year, including PNC Financial Services' merger with FirstBank, Pinnacle Financial Partners' merger with Synovus, Fifth Third's merger with Comerica, and Huntington Bancshares' acquisition of Cadence Bank. These transactions have expanded the acquirers' geographic footprints and deposit bases, and the favorable regulatory climate along with valuation disparities could fuel further consolidation. Potential takeover targets include KeyCorp and Eastern Bankshares, which have faced shareholder activist pressure, as well as lower-valued banks such as First Horizon, FNB Corporation, and Webster Financial.

Huntington Bancshares is set to report fiscal second-quarter 2026 results before the market opens on Thursday, July 23. Analysts forecast adjusted earnings per share of $0.39, a 2.6% increase from $0.38 in the same quarter last year. The company has exceeded or met Wall Street estimates in three of the past four quarters. For the full fiscal year 2026, analysts expect adjusted EPS of $1.62, up 8.7% from $1.49 in fiscal 2025, with further growth to $1.90 projected for fiscal 2027. Shares have risen 5.8% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming the S&P 500 but outpacing the financial sector ETF. The stock holds a Strong Buy consensus rating from 20 analysts, with an average price target of $19.90, implying a 12.2% upside.

Stephens resumed coverage of Huntington Bancshares with an Equal Weight rating and a $19 price target. Analyst Matt Olney, who also resumed coverage of eight other super-regional banks, said he is broadly constructive on the group's outlook, noting that operating leverage has improved over the past year. He added that capital returns for 2026 are expected to reach levels not seen since 2019 and could increase further depending on the outcome of the Basel 3 Endgame proposals. Separately, Evercore ISI raised its price target on the stock to $20 from $19 and reiterated an Outperform rating, citing robust confidence in management and a favorable operating environment.

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated declared a quarterly cash dividend on its 5.70% Series I Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock. The dividend is $356.25 per share, equivalent to $0.35625 per depositary share. It will be payable on September 1, 2026, to shareholders of record as of August 15, 2026.

Huntington Bancshares has joined The Clearing House Interbank Payments System, or CHIPS, a private-sector U.S. dollar clearing and settlement network for high-value bank-to-bank payments. The $285 billion-asset bank is integrating two 2025 acquisitions—Dallas-based Veritex for $1.9 billion and Houston-based Cadence Bank for $7.4 billion—and aims to improve payment resilience and international capabilities. CHIPS, which has 43 participants covering 43% of the U.S. banking market and processes about $2 trillion daily across 500,000 payments, provides an alternative to FedWire and supports large corporate transactions including interbank funding and foreign exchange. The Clearing House expects increased adoption following the completion of the ISO 20022 migration, which enhances digital payment data consistency, and is also working to connect blockchain-supported payments with traditional rails to enable clearing and settlement of tokenized bank deposits.