Deutsche Bank beats analyst forecasts with about 1.9 billion euro third-quarter profit

Quarterly profit tops forecasts

Deutsche Bank reported on Wednesday, 28 October, that it earned about 1.9 billion euros after tax in the July to September quarter, roughly 2% more than a year earlier. Analysts had expected about 1.7 billion euros on average, and the bank came in above that figure. Revenue reached about 8.3 billion euros, against an analyst forecast of 8.2 billion. Pre-tax profit rose 8% to just over 2.6 billion euros, and the share attributable to shareholders came to almost 1.6 billion euros, just short of the 2007 record year.

Actual, July to September 20261.9

Analyst average expectation1.7

Actual, July to September 2026

1.9 EUR billion

Analyst average expectation

1.7 EUR billion

Data from the article text

Actual, July to September 20268.3

Analyst expectation8.2

Actual, July to September 2026

8.3 EUR billion

Analyst expectation

8.2 EUR billion

Data from the article text

Investment bank drives the result

The investment bank again supplied most of the quarter's gains, booking just under 1.1 billion euros before tax, 12% more than a year earlier. Its trading in securities and currencies and its work on stock market listings had already pushed profit to a record level earlier this year. Within the group, the corporate bank posted record income and grew its profit, while the investment bank largely held on to the record results of the year-earlier quarter. Provisions for bad loans rose 9% in the quarter to 501 million euros. Finance chief Raja Akram summed up the performance in these words:

“We achieved a solid performance in all four business divisions.”

Outlook and the 2028 return target

Sewing said the figures put the bank on a good path to reach its 2026 goals. Revenue for the full year could now exceed the targeted level of around 33 billion euros, and the bank expects to work more profitably over the medium term than it had assumed. Return on equity was 10.6% in the third quarter, against a target of more than 13% for 2028. Sewing added:

“At the same time, the development strengthens our confidence that we can exceed our target of a return on equity of over 13 percent for 2028.”

Sewing said the bank would lay out in January, together with its annual results, how much more it believes it can achieve and the route to get there.

A turnaround since 2018

Sewing took over in 2018 a bank weighed down by losses and scandals. From 2019 the business model was fundamentally changed, with jobs cut, costs lowered and unprofitable business dropped. In a letter to staff, Sewing wrote that the bank sees large opportunities to move decisively closer to its aim of becoming a European champion in banking. The bank is still dealing with burdens from its past, even as its results improve.

Full-year 2025 benchmark

Full-year 2025 pre-tax profit was just over 9.7 billion euros, the highest in the bank's history, and net profit was 6.1 billion euros. Profit attributable to shareholders was higher only in the 2007 record year, at about 6.5 billion euros. For the first nine months of 2026, pre-tax profit stands at about 8.4 billion euros, with about 5.1 billion euros attributable to shareholders. The bank's full annual results are due in January.