Why Capital One (COF) Could See Both Earnings Growth and Multiple Expansion?

Why Capital One (COF) Could See Both Earnings Growth and Multiple Expansion?

Thu, August 20, 2026 at 4:14 PM GMT+3 3 min read

• COF-PN +1.39%

Eagle Capital Management, an investment management company, released its second quarter 2026 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. In the quarter, Eagle Capital Management discussed how enthusiasm around AI capital spending has driven strong S&P 500 earnings growth while also increasing risks from elevated valuations, concentrated demand, and aggressive investment assumptions. Eagle remains a strong believer in AI but prefers constructing a portfolio that can perform across multiple outcomes rather than relying on one forecast. The firm believes current earnings can overstate underlying economics because semiconductor equipment is depreciated over several years, while free cash flow growth remains much weaker. It also expects competition and additional capacity across AI labs, hyperscalers, and semiconductors to eventually create winners and losers. These dynamics are encouraging Eagle to recycle capital toward attractive opportunities outside the most crowded AI trades while maintaining selective exposure to high quality beneficiaries. The portfolio trades at a 20% market discount with faster expected EPS growth. Please review the Strategy's top five holdings for key selections.

In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, Eagle Capital Management highlighted Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF). Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) operates as the financial services holding company for the Capital One, National Association, which engages in the provision of various financial products and services. On August 19, 2026, Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) closed at $220.73 per share. The one-month return of Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) was 10.39% and its shares gained 4.11% over the past 52 weeks. Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) has a market capitalization of $135.41 billion with a 52-week trading range between $174.24 - $259.64.

Eagle Capital Management stated the following regarding Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:

"The consumer cyclicals and staples companies in this group have idiosyncratic opportunities to drive rapid earnings growth over the coming years. Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF), one of the largest credit card companies in the U.S., operates the only full-suite scaled digital bank. Last year's acquisition of Discover conferred both significant financial synergies and the upside of operating its own network. Despite its size, it is still run by the founder and retains an entrepreneurial spirit. With 20% returns on equity, we believe it is underappreciated and can drive both strong earnings growth and multiple expansion. We expect EPS growth of approximately 20% for this group of companies over the coming years."

Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) is on our list of the 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 135 hedge fund portfolios held Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) at the end of the first quarter which was 136 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

In another article, we covered Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF), where Jim Cramer highlighted a shift in consumer behavior that continues to benefit major credit card issuers. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.