Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.04 EPS

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) released its earnings results on Friday. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.04), Zacks reports. Regions Financial had a net margin of 22.49% and a return on equity of 13.05%. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from Regions Financial’s conference call:

• Reported strong full‑year results with $2.1 billion in earnings, GAAP EPS of $2.30 ($2.33 adjusted) and an industry‑leading return on tangible common equity of just over 18%.
• Loan growth was pressured in 2025 by corporate paydowns and capital‑markets refinancing, but management sees improving pipelines, ongoing banker hiring and expects average loans to be up low single digits in 2026 with NII growth guided to 2.5%–4%.
• Asset quality trends are improving: the non‑performing loan ratio declined to 73 bps, the ACL ratio stood at 1.76% (allowance = 242% of NPLs), and management forecasts 2026 net charge‑offs of 40–50 bps.
• Core modernization is progressing into user testing with a production pilot planned in Q3 and target completion in late 2027, and technology spend is being raised to roughly 10%–12% of revenue to support capabilities (including AI) ahead of expected efficiency gains.
• Capital actions and flexibility: CET1 was ~10.8% (9.6% incl. AOCI), the bank returned $2 billion to shareholders in 2025 (including a Q4 $430 million buyback and $231 million dividend) and will prioritize funding loan growth but continue buybacks when excess capital exists.

Regions Financial Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE RF opened at $27.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $26.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.03. Regions Financial has a 1 year low of $17.74 and a 1 year high of $29.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on RF shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $27.00 target price (down previously from $30.00) on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Regions Financial from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Evercore ISI cut Regions Financial from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Regions Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.21.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Regions Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Regions Financial in the second quarter worth about $25,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in shares of Regions Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Regions Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Regions Financial by 80.6% during the second quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,349 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Regions Financial by 21.8% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,197 shares of the bank’s stock worth $193,000 after buying an additional 1,466 shares during the last quarter. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Regions Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Regions Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management said AI drove roughly 20% productivity improvement and digital engagement rose — a structural efficiency gain that can boost long‑term margins. Regions Says AI Lifts Productivity 20% as Loan Growth Cools
• Positive Sentiment: Regions reported revenue and fee income growth for 2025 and cited record wealth-management and treasury-management income for the year — diversification away from pure net‑interest income. Regions Reports Strong Earnings Growth in 2025
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q4 materials and the earnings‑call transcript provide management’s detailed commentary on capital allocation, expense plans and outlook — useful for reassessing forward estimates. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 EPS of $0.57 missed consensus ($0.61) and revenue of $1.92B missed estimates — the headline miss pressured sentiment. Regions Q4 earnings summary
• Negative Sentiment: Higher non‑interest expenses (driven by elevated investment and technology spending) and cooler loan balances reduced EPS and prompted caution on near‑term earnings momentum. Regions Financial Q4 Earnings Miss on Higher Expenses

Regions Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 12.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Regions Financial

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF) is a U.S. bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services. Its primary banking subsidiary, Regions Bank, serves retail and commercial customers through a combination of branch and ATM networks, digital channels and relationship-based delivery. The company offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, and payment and treasury services.

In addition to core banking, Regions offers wealth management, trust and brokerage services, insurance solutions, and capital markets capabilities to corporate and institutional clients.