Capital One Faces Investigation After Earnings Miss
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 3h ago
0mins
Source: Globenewswire
- Earnings Miss: Capital One reported Q4 2025 earnings of $3.86 per share on January 22, 2026, falling short of the $4.14 expected by analysts, indicating a decline in profitability that could undermine investor confidence.
- Efficiency Ratio Shortfall: The company's efficiency ratio stood at 60%, also missing analyst expectations, highlighting challenges in cost management that may further erode future profitability.
- Significant Stock Drop: Following the earnings report, Capital One's stock price plummeted by $17.77, or 7.56%, closing at $217.30 per share on January 23, 2026, reflecting market concerns over the company's financial health.
- Legal Investigation Launched: Pomerantz LLP is investigating whether Capital One and its executives engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful practices, which could lead to additional legal risks and potential financial liabilities, impacting the company's reputation and shareholder interests.
Analyst Views on COF
Wall Street analysts forecast COF stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for COF is 284.22 USD with a low forecast of 256.00 USD and a high forecast of 310.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
18 Analyst Rating
16 Buy
2 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 220.180
Low
256.00
Averages
284.22
High
310.00
Current: 220.180
Low
256.00
Averages
284.22
High
310.00
About COF
Capital One Financial Corporation is a diversified financial services holding company with banking and non-banking subsidiaries. The Company offers a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients through a variety of channels. It operates through three segments: Credit Card, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking. The Credit Card segment consists of its domestic consumer and small business card lending, and international card businesses in the United Kingdom and Canada. The Consumer Banking segment consists of its deposit gathering and lending activities for consumers and small businesses, and national auto lending. The Commercial Banking segment consists of its lending, deposit gathering, capital markets and treasury management services to commercial real estate and commercial and industrial customers. Its principal operating subsidiary is Capital One, National Association, which offers banking products and financial services.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
