Summary of Huntington Bancshares (HBANM) Q4 2025 Earnings Call

1Key Financial Results and Metrics

Earnings Per Share (EPS): Reported at $0.30; adjusted EPS was $0.37, reflecting a 9% year-over-year increase.

Revenue Growth: Achieved 11% revenue growth for the year.

Adjusted EPS Growth: 16% growth year-over-year.

Loan Growth: Average loans grew 14.4% year-over-year, with organic loan growth of $10.1 billion.

Deposit Growth: Average deposits increased 5.1% quarter-over-quarter and 8.6% year-over-year.

Net Interest Income (NII): Grew by $86 million (5.6% sequentially) and 14% year-over-year, with a net interest margin of 3.15%.

Operating Expenses: Core expenses increased by only $7 million sequentially, showing cost discipline.

Credit Quality: Net charge-offs at 24 basis points; criticized asset ratio at 4.2%.

2Strategic Updates and Business Highlights

Huntington is focusing on becoming a leading customer-centric bank, expanding its presence to 21 states.

Successful integration of Veritex and Cadence partnerships, with Veritex fully integrated within 187 days.

Continued investments in branch expansion, particularly in North and South Carolina, and Texas.

Enhanced capabilities in financial advisory and capital markets through acquisitions of TM Capital and Janney Capital Markets.

Strong performance in primary bank relationships, with consumer banking up 4% and business banking up 7% year-over-year.

3Forward Guidance and Outlook

2026 Guidance:

NII growth projected at 10% to 13%, with loan growth of 11% to 12% and deposit growth of 8% to 9%.

Fee revenue expected to grow between 13% to 16%, aided by new capital markets teams and existing core services.

Core expenses anticipated to increase by 10% to 11%, with expected operating leverage of 150 to 200 basis points.

Net charge-offs projected between 25 to 35 basis points.

Confidence in achieving a 55% efficiency ratio for 2026.

4Bad News, Challenges, or Points of Concern

Credit Quality: While credit metrics remain stable, the criticized asset ratio has increased, primarily due to Veritex's commercial real estate loans.

Competitive Environment: The deposit environment remains competitive, which may pressure margins.

Integration Risks: The success of the partnerships with Veritex and Cadence hinges on effective integration and realization of synergies, which are critical for achieving projected growth.

5Notable Q&A Insights

Management emphasized the importance of a partnership approach in integrating new banks, which has fostered goodwill and accelerated decision-making.

There was a focus on maintaining positive operating leverage while continuing to invest in growth, particularly in technology and digital capabilities.

The guidance provided for expenses and revenues did not fully incorporate expected revenue synergies from the acquisitions, indicating potential upside.

Management expressed confidence in achieving long-term earnings targets, including a pro forma EPS of $2 by 2027, despite current integration challenges. Overall, Huntington Bancshares reported strong financial performance in Q4 2025, driven by organic growth and strategic partnerships, while also outlining a positive outlook for 2026 amidst some integration and competitive challenges.