In 2019, the merger between two prominent regional banks, BB&T and SunTrust, was announced, marking one of the most significant bank mergers of its time. The merged entity later adopted the name Truist Financial Corporation to establish a cohesive brand identity that reflected the union. The fundamental proposition of this merger was to harness scale in order to achieve superior operational efficiency and enhanced returns.
Now, more than six years after the merger announcement, the anticipated efficiencies and elevated returns have not materialized to the expected extent. Investors have responded with muted enthusiasm, as evidenced by the stock appreciating by only about 7% over the preceding five years. This performance underlines the challenges Truist has faced in delivering on its promises, prompting a reconsideration of the investment case in favor of alternatives, such as Bank of America.
Complexities and Challenges of Bank Mergers
When mergers or acquisitions are publicized, the initial narrative often emphasizes the benefits of increased scale and growth opportunities. This perspective holds true in the banking sector, where scale can contribute significantly to competitive advantages. Nonetheless, the intricacies of successfully integrating two substantial organizations present considerable challenges.
Shareholders in banking institutions frequently approach mergers with caution due to the financial intricacies involved. Typically, the acquiring bank must pay a premium over the tangible book value (TBV) of the acquired institution, which represents the net asset value excluding intangible assets. This premium effectively results in the destruction of some tangible book value at the time of acquisition. The acquiring bank is then tasked with generating sufficient additional earnings over time to restore and exceed the initial TBV, a process known as earning back the TBV.
Beyond financial considerations, regulatory approval processes introduce another layer of complexity and uncertainty, often slowing down integration efforts. Furthermore, melding the distinct corporate cultures of two large banking organizations is a formidable endeavor in itself. Operational integration is also complicated by the need to unify diverse back-end and front-end technological systems, which may operate on legacy platforms that challenge seamless consolidation.
Truist's Merger Performance vs. Initial Projections
In the preliminary presentation for the merger dated February 2019, both BB&T and SunTrust had comparable asset sizes of approximately $200 billion to $230 billion. The deal was characterized as accretive to BB&T’s tangible book value per share by 6%, with BB&T functioning as the technical acquirer. This projection indicated a promising start for the merged institution.
Further ambitions included achieving an efficiency ratio of 51%, a metric that gauges operating expenses relative to revenue (with a lower ratio indicating higher efficiency), and a return on tangible common equity (ROTCE) of 22%, reflecting profitability.
However, in its latest quarterly results, Truist reported an adjusted efficiency ratio of 55.7% and a ROTCE of 13.6%, falling short of its initial targets. Contributing factors to this underperformance included elevated technology integration costs and various operational challenges, which have led to customer dissatisfaction. These issues illustrate some of the difficulties encountered during the merger integration process.
Although Truist may be moving past these initial setbacks, the prolonged timeline and disappointing market performance emphasize the ongoing need to rebuild shareholder value. Uncertainties remain regarding the institution's ability to fully realize the anticipated benefits of the merger.
Bank of America as a Preferable Investment Alternative
For investors seeking exposure to the banking sector, which is projected to perform well in the coming year, Bank of America presents a potentially more reliable option. As the second-largest bank in the United States, Bank of America boasts a robust retail deposit base and a diversified suite of banking services.
Its business encompasses commercial lending, credit card issuance, investment banking, payment processing, and wealth management, all managed under a single corporate umbrella, providing operational scale and diversification.
While Bank of America's shares trade at a premium on a price-to-tangible-book-value basis relative to Truist, this valuation reflects its stronger financial metrics. The bank recently achieved a ROTCE exceeding 15.4%, outperforming Truist’s metrics and highlighting superior profitability standards.
Bank of America’s valuation also remains notably below that of the largest U.S. bank, JPMorgan Chase, presenting potential upside should market perceptions adjust.
Recent Challenges and Prospects for Bank of America
During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bank of America invested heavily in low-yielding, long-term bonds amid a low-interest-rate environment. This strategy proved disadvantageous when inflation proved persistent and the Federal Reserve escalated interest rates considerably. Consequently, these bonds incurred substantial unrealized losses.
As these bonds mature, Bank of America is positioned to recover its tangible book value and realign its asset composition by reinvesting deposits into higher-yielding instruments. This transition is expected to bolster earnings over the medium to long term.
Moreover, Bank of America offers a dividend yield of approximately 2%, providing income to shareholders. Anticipated regulatory easing, in the form of reduced capital and liquidity requirements, may enable the bank to deploy more capital towards lending activities and shareholder returns, further enhancing its investment appeal.
Conclusion
In summary, while the merger that created Truist Financial embodied a strategic effort to enhance scale and efficiency, the outcomes have so far diverged from initial expectations, reflected in both operational metrics and stock performance. Investors weighing options within the banking sector may find Bank of America's comprehensive business model, current financial trends, and potential regulatory tailwinds to be factors that make it a more compelling long-term holding.