Barclays Posts 12% Rise in Third-Quarter Profit and Announces £500 Million Share Buyback

London: Barclays reported a 12 percent increase in third-quarter pretax profit on Thursday, supported by higher income and disciplined costs, and announced a new share buyback of up to £500 million (about $670 million).

The British lender said profit before tax reached £2.3 billion for the July–September period, up from £2.1 billion a year earlier and broadly in line with analysts’ average forecast of £2.4 billion. Attributable profit rose 13 percent to £1.65 billion, while earnings per share climbed 18 percent to 12.3 pence.

Group income grew 3 percent to £7.4 billion. Net interest income, excluding the investment bank and head office, rose 7 percent to £3.5 billion, helped by stronger structural hedge income and continued loan growth. Operating costs edged up 1 percent to £4.6 billion, improving the cost-to-income ratio to 62 percent from 63 percent. Credit impairment charges fell 20 percent to around £503 million.

Return on tangible equity, a key measure of profitability, improved to 11.7 percent from 10.6 percent a year earlier, although it was below the second quarter’s 16.1 percent. Pretax profit was also lower than the previous quarter’s £3.25 billion, which had been lifted by a gain of about £225 million from the sale of an American Airlines credit card portfolio.

Performance across the investment bank was mixed. Its income came in at £3.1 billion, below expectations of £3.3 billion. Equities trading revenue jumped 47 percent, outpacing the average 37 percent gain at the five largest US banks, but fixed income, currencies and commodities income fell 19 percent, a steeper decline than the 5 percent drop among those US peers. At the US consumer bank, return on tangible equity slipped to 10.9 percent from 13.5 percent, as costs rose 14 percent following the acquisition of Best Egg.

Barclays’ common equity tier 1 capital ratio stood at 14.2 percent at the end of September and will fall to 14.0 percent after the new buyback, within the bank’s target range of 13 to 14 percent. The latest repurchase brings total shareholder distributions announced so far this year to £2.8 billion, a 46 percent increase.

Chief Executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan said he was pleased with the continued momentum in the bank’s operational and financial performance. With one quarter remaining in its original three-year plan, Barclays said it had either met or was on track to meet all of its 2026 group targets, as well as its goals for 2028.