Huntington Bancshares Incorporated’s HBAN strategic expansion in Texas is gaining momentum, supported by targeted acquisitions, geographic diversification and deeper penetration into high-growth markets.
The bank began reinforcing its Texas strategy in March 2024, when it announced plans to expand its commercial banking operations in the state, following its earlier footprint extension in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The strategy accelerated in October 2025 with the acquisition of Veritex Holdings, which expanded Huntington’s presence in Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston. In February 2026, the company strengthened its position by completing its merger with Cadence Bank, significantly increasing its scale across Texas and the broader southern United States.
At the Morgan Stanley financial services conference held yesterday, Huntington’s management highlighted the strong early returns from its Texas expansion strategy. The company pointed to meaningful earnings upside from recent acquisitions, cost-saving opportunities and integration efforts.
Management expects to generate up to $500 million in combined cost savings and revenue synergies by the end of 2026, driven primarily by the Veritex and Cadence transactions. These acquisitions have strengthened Huntington’s presence in attractive Texas markets, including Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston, while also expanding its reach across the South.
Management emphasized that the Texas strategy is not merely about adding scale. The focus is also on improving profitability through operating efficiencies, customer growth and cross-selling opportunities. The upcoming Cadence systems conversion will reach a milestone, as it will bring acquired customers and employees onto Huntington’s common operating platform. This is expected to accelerate integration benefits and support stronger customer engagement.
Huntington has already achieved $70 million in cost savings targeted from the Veritex transaction. The company also sees a clear path to realizing $365 million in expense savings from the Cadence deal. These synergies are expected to contribute meaningfully to earnings growth over the next two years. Huntington expects to generate $500 million in revenue synergies from the two Texas deals by the end of 2028, including $50-$75 million in 2026.
Management also reaffirmed its longer-term financial targets, including projected earnings per share of $1.90-$1.93 in 2027 and a return on tangible common equity of 18-19%. This would mark a solid improvement from 2025, when Huntington reported earnings of $1.39 per share and a return on tangible common equity of 15.7%.
Other Banks Expanding in Texas Market
Huntington is not the only regional bank strengthening its Texas presence. In January 2026, Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. PB completed its previously announced acquisition of American Bank Holding Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary, American Bank.
With American Bank’s 18 full-service branches and two loan production offices across South and Central Texas, the acquisition significantly enhances Prosperity’s competitive position in several high-growth Texas markets.
Fifth Third Bancorp FITB is also expanding aggressively in Texas. In February 2026, Fifth Third acquired Comerica, a transaction that broadened its reach across key markets in the Southeast, Texas and California, while reinforcing its leadership position in the Midwest.
Fifth Third’s management is now integrating the platform on an accelerated timeline and remains on track to achieve $360 million in net cost savings in 2026 and an $850-million annual run rate by the fourth quarter of 2026.
HBAN’s Price Performance & Zacks Rank
Over the six months, shares of Huntington have declined 6% compared with the industry’s fall of 4.1%.
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HBAN currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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