Summary

• Aside from Wells Fargo's revenue miss, big banks broadly surpassed their top- and bottom-line estimates for Q1.
• Citigroup delivered a tremendous increase in ROTCE on the basis of wider margins. Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Goldman followed suit with stellar ROTCEs.
• Goldman accomplished strong headline results. However, the bank provisioned higher and saw a steep drop in CET1 due to higher RWA.
• It was smooth sailing for Morgan Stanley on all fronts. Given the current macro environment, its high-margin business model, market exposure, and lack of consumer lending exposure set it apart.
• Risks include multiples and technical buying being high across most big banks, a negative private credit narrative, and global macro risks.

Big banks released their quarterly earnings results this week, delivering a welcome surprise to investors as most of Wall Street's juggernauts surpassed estimates.

Despite the strong industry-wide results, we need to remind ourselves that

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