WFC

Wells Fargo is a steadily improving money-center bank. FY2025 net income of $21.3B (+8.2%) marks a third straight annual increase off the 2022 trough (2022 $13.7B → 2023 $19.1B → 2024 $19.7B → 2025 $21.3B), closing in on the 2021 peak of $22.1B. Diluted EPS of $6.26 grew 16.6% — well ahead of net income — because the share count fell 6.2% on heavy buybacks. ROE of 11.8% and a 25.1% net margin confirm a profitable franchise, though that ROE is still mid-tier for a money-center bank and is the central quality caveat. Total assets rose 11.3% to $2.15T, a notable balance-sheet re-expansion after years of constraint that is supportive of future earning-asset and net-interest-income growth; equity, however, grew only 1.1%, so leverage ticked up (liabilities/equity 10.85x).

The shareholder-return story is the core of the call. In FY2025 the bank paid $17.5B in buybacks plus $5.43B in dividends (+5.9%) — roughly $23B returned, more than 100% of net income. The 10-K discloses a $40B repurchase authorization announced April 29, 2025, with about $29.8B still available as of November 2025, and management was repurchasing at ~$86/share in Oct–Nov 2025, above today's $82.20. At 13.1x earnings and ~3.0x sales, the stock isn't demanding; the shrinking share count plus a ~2% dividend yield frames a reasonable total-return setup, supporting a modest re-rate toward ~14.4x ($90).