PROVIDENCE – Citizens Financial Group Inc. on Thursday reported a profit of $517 million in the first quarter of 2026, a 39% increase from the $373 million it posted a year ago.
The quarterly gain was driven by higher net interest income, expanding margins and stronger fee growth, as revenue growth outpaced expenses and credit quality improved.
The parent company of Citizens Bank, Citizens Financial Group declared diluted earnings of $1.13 per share, up from 77 cents in the first quarter of 2025.
The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.10 per share.
The bank posted quarterly revenue of $2.17 billion in the period, up from $1.93 billion in the first quarter of 2025.
Meanwhile, net interest income totaled $1.56 billion, up from $1.39 billion in the first quarter of 2025, while net interest margin rose to 3.14% from 2.90% a year earlier.
Net interest margin, a key metric that assesses what the bank earns on loans minus what it pays on deposits, improved to 3.14% from 2.90% a year earlier as funding costs declined and fixed-rate asset repricing continued, the bank said.
Citizens Financial Group Chairman and CEO Bruce Van Saun said the bank’s strong first-quarter performance came despite a challenging macroeconomic and geopolitical backdrop.
"We continue to be well-positioned to deliver a strong year and reach our medium-term targets.” he said.
Noninterest income increased to $606 million from $544 million in the first quarter of 2025, driven by higher capital markets and wealth management fees.
Noninterest expenses rose to $1.38 billion from $1.31 billion a year earlier, primarily due to higher salaries and employee benefits tied to hiring in private banking and wealth operations.
Meanwhile, total assets stood at $227.9 billion at the end of the quarter, up from $220.1 billion a year earlier.
Deposits totaled $184 billion, an increase from $177.6 billion reported in the first quarter of 2025, reflecting growth in the private bank and consumer segments.
Net charge-offs as a percentage of average loans declined to 0.39% from 0.58% a year earlier, indicating improving credit trends.
Citizens Financial Group shares have declined since the start of the year but remain up over the past 12 months.
(Material from The Associated Press was used in this report.)
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
