BCS
A slightly better quarter, no confetti required
Barclays kicked off 2026 with a decent little flex: first-quarter pretax profit came in at £2.8 billion, up from £2.7 billion last year. Basic earnings per share also edged higher to 14.1 pence from 13.0 pence. Not exactly fireworks, but it’s the kind of progress that keeps the story moving in the right direction.
The part investors actually care about
The bigger message wasn’t the profit print — it was Barclays sticking with its 2026 and 2028 targets. That’s management basically saying, “Yes, we still like the plan, thanks for asking.” In banking, consistency can be its own kind of currency, especially when the market is always hunting for signs that the turnaround is wobbling.
A couple numbers worth keeping in your back pocket:
- Group RoTE landed at 13.5%, down a touch from 14.0% last year
- Pretax profit nudged higher, which suggests the core engine is still humming
- Targets were reiterated, which usually helps calm the “but what’s next?” crowd
Why this matters now
Banks live and die by whether they can turn messy market conditions into predictable returns. Barclays didn’t deliver a blockbuster, but it did deliver the thing investors often love almost as much: a quarter that says the machine still works. If you own the stock, you’re probably looking less for a home run and more for evidence the game plan keeps compounding.
Big picture: this was more “keep calm and carry on” than “new era unlocked,” but in banking, that can still be a very investable vibe.