Bank earnings kickoff: Hightower's Stephanie Link on the key takeaways

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  January 14, 2026 at 12:58  |  3:57  |  CNBC
Speakers
Stephanie Link — Chief Investment Strategist, Hightower

Summary

Stephanie Link of Hightower joined CNBC's Squawk Box to assess early bank earnings. She said Wells Fargo's report was solid despite an NII miss and called it her favorite name, viewing any weakness as a buying opportunity. She said Bank of America was the best of the big three so far, pointing to broad beats and attractive valuation relative to Wells Fargo. Upcoming Citi and Morgan Stanley reports were noted, but no views were given on them.

  • CNBC Squawk Box segment with Stephanie Link reviewing the bank earnings kickoff.
  • Wells Fargo reported a solid quarter but missed on net interest income; Link sees weakness as a buying opportunity and calls it her favorite bank name.
  • Bank of America beat expectations with broad-based growth; Link calls it the best of the big three and notes a lower book valuation than Wells Fargo.
  • Link cites Wells Fargo's lifted asset cap, buybacks, and profitability targets as multiyear growth drivers.
  • Morgan Stanley and Citi earnings are mentioned as upcoming, but no directional views were given.
Ideas
Stephanie Link Chief Investment Strategist, Hightower 0:40
Buy Wells Fargo weakness; growth story ahead.
Wells Fargo's quarter was solid despite missing on net interest income, with 6% profit growth, lower net charge-offs, 14% corporate investment banking growth, 6% wealth management growth, ROT(C) improvement to 15% versus a 17-18% medium-term target, and a $31 billion buyback program. The asset cap has been lifted, so the company can aggressively invest and gain market share; Link calls it her favorite name and would buy any weakness, expecting profitability and growth to improve significantly in 2026 and beyond. The stock's 31% past-year gain means the NII miss caused a short-term pullback, but she views that as a buying opportunity.
Stephanie Link Chief Investment Strategist, Hightower 3:11
BAC beat, best big-bank report, cheap valuation.
Bank of America was the best of the big three so far, beating on net income with total revenue up 7%, net interest income up 10%, global wealth management up 10%, sales and trading up 10%, and average loans up 8% across every business, better than guidance a month ago. Link says the stock should be up much more and highlights that it trades at 1.4 times book versus Wells Fargo at 1.8 times book, making the strong surprise and relative valuation attractive.
Up Next

This CNBC video, published January 14, 2026, features Stephanie Link discussing WFC, BAC. 2 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Stephanie Link  · Tickers: WFC, BAC