Truist's second-quarter profit rises on higher interest income, friendlier comparisons

Truist Financial TFC reported a rise in second-quarter profit on Friday, helped by higher interest income and friendlier comparisons to the year-ago period.

The U.S. Federal Reserve's series of interest rate cuts during the second half of 2024 has spurred banks to actively reduce deposit costs across their portfolios.

Truist's net interest income — the difference between the interest it pays on deposits and what it earns on loans — rose 1.7% to $3.59 billion from a year ago. This reflects a 24 basis points (bps) reduction in the average cost of total deposits.

Shares of the company rose 2% in premarket trading.

The lender also benefited as securities losses, part of its non-interest income, narrowed to $18 million in the quarter, compared to a $6.65 billion loss recorded in the year-ago period.

Truist's non-interest income swung to $1.4 billion in the quarter, compared to a $5.21 billion loss a year earlier.

The Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank reported a 28.3% fall in its investment banking and trading income. Peer Citizens Financial CFG also reported a drop in capital market fees on Thursday.

Early in the quarter, M&A activity was scuttled to a 20-year low after U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, which have now eased. Executives expect greater dealmaking in the second half of 2025, as stabilizing financial markets benefit from lighter regulation.

The bank's M&A pipeline is "probably the strongest it's been in the last several years," William Rogers, Truist's chairman and CEO, said at the Morgan Stanley Financials Conference last month.

Truist reported a profit of $1.18 billion or 90 cents per share in the reported quarter, compared to $830 million or 62 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Truist's shares have gained nearly 3.8% in 2025, as of last close, lagging a 12.2% rise in the KBW Banking Index (.BKX).