U.S. Big Banks' Performance Review for 2025
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jan 30 2026
0mins
Source: Benzinga
- Bank Performance Overview: In 2025, the six largest U.S. banks saw an average increase of 42%, with an average return of 45.51%, significantly outperforming tech stocks at 22.74%, indicating strong performance driven by high interest rates and M&A activity, yet facing risks from tightening regulations and softening loan demand ahead.
- Declining Loan Demand: As demand for commercial real estate and small business loans weakens, banks' net interest margins are peaking, with analysts warning of potential rate cuts ahead, creating a mismatch between investor expectations and the reality for bank stocks.
- Sell Recommendations for Major Banks: Analysts suggest investors consider selling Bank of America (BAC), PNC Financial Services (PNC), and Wells Fargo (WFC) due to challenges such as slowing loan growth and rising compliance costs, which could negatively impact stock performance.
- Increased Regulatory Pressure: The Trump administration's scrutiny of bank stock buyback programs may lead to declining profits, particularly for WFC, which missed earnings expectations in its latest report, highlighting ongoing legal and market challenges that could further affect its stock price.
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Analyst Views on BAC
Wall Street analysts forecast BAC stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for BAC is 61.17 USD with a low forecast of 55.00 USD and a high forecast of 71.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
18 Analyst Rating
14 Buy
4 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 54.940
Low
55.00
Averages
61.17
High
71.00
Current: 54.940
Low
55.00
Averages
61.17
High
71.00
About BAC
Bank of America Corporation is a bank holding company and a financial holding company. Its segments include Consumer Banking, Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM), Global Banking and Global Markets. Consumer Banking segment offers a range of credit, banking and investment products and services to consumers and small businesses. The GWIM includes two businesses: Merrill Wealth Management, which provides tailored solutions to meet clients' needs through a full set of investment management, brokerage, banking and retirement products and Bank of America Private Bank, which provides comprehensive wealth management solutions. Global Banking segment provides a range of lending-related products and services, integrated working capital management and treasury solutions, and underwriting and advisory services. Global Markets segment offers sales and trading services and research services to institutional clients across fixed-income, credit, currency, commodity, and equity businesses.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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