Capital One increases provision for bad-debt expenses as earnings miss Wall Street consensus

By Nora Redmond

Capital One's provision for credit losses was up by 72% to $4.07 billion in the first quarter as compared with the year-earlier quarter.

Capital One has boosted its provision for credit losses and missed Wall Street expectations for first-quarter results.

The Virginia-headquartered bank late Tuesday set aside $4.07 billion to cover estimated expenses from bad debt, compared with expectations of $3.77 billion, according to data compiled by the London Stock Exchange Group. This represents an increase of 72% in possible credit losses as compared with the same quarter a year earlier, up from $2.37 billion in 2025.

Shares of Capital One (COF) fell 1.5% on Wednesday, bringing total losses to 17.7% since the start of the year.

The sixth-largest bank in the U.S. posted revenue of $15.23 billion in the first three months ending March 31, a rise of 52%, but below consensus of $15.36 billion.

CEO Richard Fairbank, also founder and chairman of the bank, said the 31-year-old company's results reflected "solid top line growth and strong credit performance."

Capital One reported adjusted earnings per share of $4.42, lower than the estimated $4.50. It saw profit for the period reaching $2.17 billion, a 55% jump from net income a year before.

"The ideal punch line would be can they meet consensus expectations for $28 in operating earnings in 2028 - no clear answer but our gut is the street will slip a bit to $27 to continue to build in some cost cushion," Brian Foran at Truist Securities, wrote in a note on Tuesday.

The bank completed its $35 billion-plus acquisition of Discover Financial Services in March 2025.

-Nora Redmond

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04-22-26 1727ET