Webster Financial Corporation (WBS) Earnings
Webster Financial Corporation is expected to report next earnings on July 21, 2026 (in NaN days), with a consensus EPS estimate of $1.61. WBS has beaten EPS estimates in 7 of its last 12 reported quarters (average surprise +3.5% over the last four).
| Report date | EPS est | EPS actual | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 2026 | $1.53 | $1.57 | +2.6% | $736M | +0.1% |
| Jan 23, 2026 | $1.52 | $1.59 | +4.6% | $746M | +2.0% |
| Oct 17, 2025 | $1.52 | $1.54 | +1.3% | $733M | +0.7% |
| Jul 17, 2025 | $1.44 | $1.52 | +5.6% | $716M | -0.1% |
| Apr 24, 2025 | $1.38 | $1.30 | -5.8% | $705M | -0.2% |
| Jan 28, 2025 | $1.36 | $1.46 | +7.4% | $1.0B | — |
| Oct 17, 2024 | $1.35 | $1.34 | -0.7% | $648M | -4.4% |
| Jul 23, 2024 | $1.34 | $1.26 | -6.0% | $615M | -9.2% |
| Jan 23, 2024 | $1.46 | $1.46 | +0.0% | $635M | +5.3% |
| Oct 19, 2023 | $1.49 | $1.55 | +4.0% | $678M | +7.9% |
| Jul 20, 2023 | $1.47 | $1.50 | +2.0% | $673M | +8.9% |
| Apr 20, 2023 | $1.59 | $1.49 | -6.3% | $666M | +9.7% |
Source: company filings + earnings calendar. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Earnings call summary
Q4 FY2025 · January 23, 2026
AI summary of management’s prepared remarks and analyst Q&A. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Management highlights
- John Ciulla started by noting Webster's strong fundamental performance in Q4 2025 and 2025 full year, with 17% ROTCE, 1.2% ROA, 10% EPS growth, 8% loan growth, 6% deposit growth, and 13% tangible book value per share increase. He highlighted investments in nontraditional banking verticals like HSA Bank, Mitros, and InterSync, and aggressive loan portfolio remediation reducing commercial classified loans by 5% from prior year-end. - Luis Massiani discussed Q4 performance echoing solid results, credit remediation progress (commercial classified loans down 7%, nonperformers down 8%, net charge-offs 35 basis points), and deposit growth opportunities. He mentioned HSA Bank seeing increased account openings in direct-to-consumer channel with expectation of $1B to $2.5B incremental deposit growth over 5 years, and Mitros having strong deposit growth outlook with added sales capacity. - Neal Holland reviewed balance sheet growth (assets up $880M in Q4, $5B+ full year), loan trends (loans up $1.5B in Q4, 7.8% full year), deposit trends (total deposits up 0.9% Q4, deposit costs down 11 basis points), income statement trends, net interest income, allowance for credit losses, capital ratios above well-capitalized levels, and 2026 outlook with loan growth 5%-7%, deposit growth 4%-6%, midpoint revenue $3B, net interest income $2.57B-$2.63B, fees $390M-$410M, expenses $1.46B-$1.48B.
Guidance
- 2026 loan growth expected to be 5% to 7% and deposit growth 4% to 6%. - Midpoint of 2026 revenue expected to be $3 billion. - On a GAAP basis, net interest income expected to be $2.57 billion to $2.63 billion, assuming two 25 basis point Fed funds cuts in June and September. - Fees expected to be $390 million to $410 million and expenses $1.46 billion to $1.48 billion, noting 2026 expenses likely a few percentage points higher than Q4 adjusted expenses due to seasonal impacts.
Segment performance
For the full year 2025, Webster generated a 17% ROTCE and a 1.2% ROA. EPS was up 10% over the prior year, loans grew 8%, deposits 6%, and tangible book value per share increased 13%. In the fourth quarter, assets were up $880 million (1%), loans up $1.5 billion (2.8%), deposits up 0.9%. Net interest income saw a modest increase, adjusted net income was slightly higher, allowance for credit losses decreased $9 million, nonperforming assets were down 8%, and commercial classified loans were down 7%. Revenue contribution details weren't explicitly broken down by segment beyond general mentions of HSA Bank, Mitros, and InterSync investments.
Risks & headwinds
- Macro environment uncertainty which can affect asset quality and overall performance. - Intense competition in the banking industry, particularly in deposit pricing and loan origination. - Regulatory changes that could impact business operations, such as potential health care policy developments affecting HSA Bank's ability to grow deposit base. - Risks associated with the two isolated pockets of the loan portfolio with less favorable credit characteristics, though remediation efforts are ongoing to optimize the balance sheet.
Analyst Q&A
Q: On the loan growth side or outlook, can you just give an update on how the partnership with Marathon is influencing that and, you know, maybe where things stand there now that we've had a couple of quarters?
A: John Ciulla said they're live and operational, not yet seen material impact on loan growth trajectory, expect a couple of million dollars in positive income from the JV, and are live operational having originated loans for the JV but relatively conservative on impact on 2026 loan growth and financial performance.
Q: As a follow-up, just looking at the expense trends and some of the investments you called out in systems and taking advantage of the bronze opportunity, is most of that marketing and, you know, sort of client outreach, or is there any system change that you're contemplating to, you know, to bring on more of those individuals?
A: Luis Massiani said mostly marketing, with large part of investment being in identifying individuals as it's a direct-to-consumer business different from historical sales channels, and technology capabilities are in place with larger investment dollars going into identifying and motivating those individuals to become HSA holders.
Q: Mark Fitzgibbon asked about category four threshold being lifted and its strategic impact.
A: John Ciulla said anticipation of changes already impacting forward look on investment, pivoted in not fully preparing for category four as it's likely to be modified, giving flexibility to increase profitability or reposition dollars into revenue-generating investments.
Q: Mark Fitzgibbon asked about NIM trajectory in early 2026.
A: Neal Holland said ended Q4 and December at 3.35% NIM, expects to maintain that throughout 2026 with normal seasonal factors, thinking in mid-3.30s range for go-forward NIM expectations.
Q: Matthew Breese asked about current spreads on commercial real estate and C&I and loan growth in lower-risk sectors.
A: John Ciulla said credit spreads have tightened 30-50 basis points over 18 months, compression in commercial real estate assets to 180-200 basis points over reference rates, and expects continued benign credit and trend lines in growing assets to lead to less risk in portfolio and potential reserve reductions.
Q: Casey Haire asked about why loan guide is 5%-7% when hearing thoughts on strong growth.
A: John Ciulla said lower payoffs than anticipated in Q4 normalized growth, and deliberate capital allocations and focus on core franchise building full relationships lead to conservative guide but potential upside if economy and sponsor book perform better.
Q: Chris O'Connell asked about balance sheet liability side movement and fee guide drivers.
A: Neal Holland said no unusual factors besides sub-debt and seasonality, and fees have four major areas with client activity driving steady growth and unusual categories like BOLI, CBA, and direct investments causing variability in fee guide.
Q: David Schiavarini asked about HSA open enrollment season and capital management buyback pace.
A: Luis Massiani said HSA open enrollment season so far ahead of last year with ~15,000 more accounts, direct-to-consumer channel growth accelerating, and John Ciulla said capital strategy remains to invest in organic growth and return capital to shareholders, likely to see share repurchases like in 2025 and closer to moving CET1 down after stress testing in Q1-Q2.