In the following video, Motley Fool financial analyst Matt Koppenheffer discusses how investors are looking at the nation's banks this earnings season. He notes that while some banks that have struggled to recover from the financial crisis and were hit particularly hard, such as Regions Financial (RF +0.00%), are able to thrill investors with only modestly positive earnings, others, like Bank of America (BAC +0.79%), have seen investor expectations ramp up to incredibly optimistic levels over the course of the past year, leaving the possibility of disappointing with their earnings reports high, even when the report is fairly positive.
The Wicked Expectations Gap in Banking
By Matt Koppenheffer – Jan 23, 2013 at 11:01AM
NYSE: BAC
Bank of America
Market Cap
$396B
Today's Change
(0.79%) $0.42
Current Price
$53.45
Price as of October 31, 2025 at 4:00 PM ET
The disparity in bank earnings expectations.
About the Author
Matt is the head of the Coverage Team for The Motely Fool's premium products. Previously, he's been . Matt is a heavy user of AI tools and is working on harnessing them to help Fool members. Previously, Matt was GM of Motley Fool Ascent, led The Motley Fool Deutschland, has been an investor on various Fool services, and co-hosted the podcast "Where the Money Is". He also co-authored the book The Astonishing Collapse of MF Global. Matt started his career in San Francisco as a technology-focused investment banker and also worked at a $15 billion private equity company. When he's thinking about how to make Fools smarter, happier, and richer, you can usually find Matt running trails or making a mess in the kitchen. He's a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, but is a lifelong fan of Penn State football.