greeksoup/ stock research

Customers Bancorp, Inc.: Q1 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q1 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 23 April 2026: press release. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Net income per diluted share $1.97: Net income available to common shareholders was $69.7 million, or $1.97 per diluted share, against $70.1 million and $1.98 in Q4 2025 and $9.5 million and $0.29 in Q1 2025. Source
  • Net interest income fell $13.1 million: Net interest income was $191.4 million, down $13.1 million from Q4 2025 and up $23.9 million from Q1 2025. Lower interest income from C&I loans and interest-earning deposits drove the quarterly decline. Source
  • Efficiency ratio improved 326 basis points: The efficiency ratio was 49.68%, against 52.94% in Q1 2025. Source
  • Loans grew $615 million in quarter: Loans and leases held for investment rose 3.7% from December 31, 2025, with growth across several verticals. Source
  • Deposits rose $814 million: Total deposits rose 3.9% to $21.6 billion in the quarter and were up $2.7 billion, or 14.0%, from Q1 2025. Source
  • Non-interest bearing deposits reached record: Non-interest bearing deposits reached $6.7 billion, or 31.2% of total deposits, after a $436.0 million increase in the quarter. Source
  • Commercial accounts up 1,167: Net commercial accounts rose by 1,167, or 5.0%, in one quarter, and the 2025 teams alone added 625 accounts. Source

“We got off to a strong start to the year in what is typically a slower quarter, as we continued to strategically grow our loan and deposit portfolios with momentum throughout the organization.”

Customers Bancorp CEO Sam Sidhu

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Loan growth20268% to 12%
Deposit growth20268% to 12%
Net interest income2026$800 to $830 million
Non-interest expense2026$440 to $460 million
CET1 capital ratio2026 target11.5% to 12.5%
Tax rate202623% to 25%

What changed from last quarter

  • New: Sam Sidhu became chief executive on January 1, 2026, succeeding Jay Sidhu. Source
  • Ended: A $110 million subordinated debt issue of Customers Bank was repaid in Q1 2026. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Net income per diluted share $1.97: Net income available to common shareholders was $69.7 million, or $1.97 per diluted share, against $70.1 million and $1.98 in Q4 2025 and $9.5 million and $0.29 in Q1 2025. Source
  • Core earnings $69.4 million: Core earnings were $69.4 million, or $1.97 per diluted share, against $72.9 million, or $2.06, in Q4 2025. Core earnings exclude $0.3 million of pre-tax gains on investment securities. Source
  • Net interest income fell $13.1 million: Net interest income was $191.4 million, down $13.1 million from Q4 2025 and up $23.9 million from Q1 2025. Lower interest income from C&I loans and interest-earning deposits drove the quarterly decline. Source
  • Efficiency ratio improved 326 basis points: The efficiency ratio was 49.68%, against 52.94% in Q1 2025. Source

Loan growth by category

  • Loans grew $615 million in quarter: Loans and leases held for investment rose 3.7% from December 31, 2025, with growth across several verticals. Source
  • Specialized lending led quarterly growth: C&I specialized lending rose 4.3% to $7.4 billion. Owner-occupied CRE rose 12.7% to $1.3 billion, mortgage finance 7.7% to $1.8 billion, and construction 25.8% to $205 million. Source
  • Other C&I loans declined: Other C&I loans fell $30 million, or 2.9%, to $1.0 billion, partly offsetting the increases in other categories. Source
  • Loans up 15.3% from a year earlier: Loans grew $2.3 billion year over year. C&I specialized lending was up 21.9%, mortgage finance 23.9% and non-owner occupied CRE 21.1%. Source

“Net interest income and net interest margin were impacted as expected by the sunsetting of the discount accretion that benefitted Q3 and Q4 2025 as well as a lower day count in the quarter,”

Customers Bancorp CFO Mark McCollom

Deposits and funding

  • Deposits rose $814 million: Total deposits rose 3.9% to $21.6 billion in the quarter and were up $2.7 billion, or 14.0%, from Q1 2025. Source
  • Non-interest bearing deposits reached record: Non-interest bearing deposits reached $6.7 billion, or 31.2% of total deposits, after a $436.0 million increase in the quarter. Source
  • Deposit cost eased 8 basis points: The average cost of total deposits fell to 2.46% from 2.54% in Q4 2025 and 2.82% in Q1 2025. Source
  • FHLB advances drove borrowings higher: Total borrowings reached $1.9 billion, up $197 million in the quarter, primarily from FHLB draws and federal funds purchased. Source

Credit quality and reserves

  • Provision edged up to $23 million: Provision for credit losses was $23 million, up from $22 million in Q4 2025 and down from $28 million in Q1 2025. Source
  • Net charge-offs held at $13 million: Annualized net charge-offs were 0.32% of average total loans and leases, against 0.33% in Q4 2025 and 0.48% in Q1 2025. Source
  • Allowance rose to $161 million: Reserves were 336.61% of nonperforming loans at March 31, 2026, against 356.29% at December 31, 2025. Source
  • Government-guaranteed SBA share: Excluding the government-guaranteed portion, nonperforming loans were about $36 million, or 0.21% of total loans and leases. Source

“Importantly we are driving significant positive operating leverage with core revenue* growth of 16% and core expense* growth of only 9% in Q1 2026 compared to Q1 2025.”

Customers Bancorp CFO Mark McCollom

Costs, efficiency and tax

  • Non-interest expense fell $5.3 million: Non-interest expense was $112.0 million, down from Q4 2025 and up $9.2 million from Q1 2025. Source
  • Salaries drove year-over-year cost rise: Salaries and benefits rose $8.6 million year over year. Commercial lease depreciation rose $4.2 million with lease growth, while FDIC assessments fell $3.5 million. Source
  • Core efficiency improved 301 basis points: The core efficiency ratio was 49.68%, against 52.69% in Q1 2025. Core and GAAP non-interest expense were the same in Q1 2026. Source
  • Q4 2025 unique expenses noted: Management said Q4 2025 included $4.8 million of expense unique to that quarter, and that expenses declined modestly quarter over quarter after adjusting for it. Source
  • Effective tax rate was 22.9%: Income tax expense was $20.7 million, down $2.2 million from Q4 2025, reflecting lower pre-tax income and higher discrete benefits. Source

Fees, clients and commercial accounts

  • Non-interest income rose $1.8 million: Non-interest income was $34.3 million, up from $32.5 million in Q4 2025. The Q1 2025 figure included a $51.3 million impairment loss on AFS debt securities. Source
  • Warrant gains and lease income: Loan fees rose $3.1 million, mainly on gains on certain stock warrants, and commercial lease income rose $1.2 million in the quarter. Source
  • Commercial accounts up 1,167: Net commercial accounts rose by 1,167, or 5.0%, in one quarter, and the 2025 teams alone added 625 accounts. Source

Capital and shareholder returns

  • Book value per share reached $63.64: Book value per common share was $63.64 and tangible book value per share was $63.54 at March 31, 2026, up from $61.87 and $61.77 at December 31, 2025. Source
  • Buybacks of 621,668 shares: Common share repurchases were $43 million in the quarter, at an average price of $68.04 per share. Source
  • Tangible common equity ratio at 8.3%: Tangible common equity to tangible assets rose 60 basis points from March 31, 2025 to 8.3% at March 31, 2026. Source

Strategy and 2026 priorities

  • Four priorities for 2026: Management named four priorities: AI and automation, payments, above-industry loan and deposit growth with team recruitment, and risk management with capital, liquidity and credit quality maintained. Source
  • AI and automation targeted: Management is targeting higher use of AI and automation to transform the organization through client experience and productivity. Source
  • Payments capabilities to broaden: Plans widen payments by adding industries and use cases, and deepen existing client relationships through expanded product offerings. Source
  • Growth and recruitment remain targets: Management will seek loan and deposit growth above the industry average and continue the team recruitment approach. Source

Coming up, as management said on 23 April 2026

  • Loan and recruitment pipelines continue: Management said the loan pipeline and the team recruitment pipeline both continue into the next period. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Net interest margin Source3.22% tax equivalent
Net interest income Source$191.4 million
Loans Source$17.4 billion, up 3.7% from December 31, 2025
Deposits Source$21.6 billion, up 3.9% from December 31, 2025
Deposit costs Source2.46% total cost of deposits
Provision for credit losses Source$23 million
Net charge-offs Source$13 million
Nonperforming assets Source$74.7 million; 0.29% of total assets
CET1 capital ratio Source12.8% (estimated)
Efficiency ratio Source49.68%

Risks management discussed

  • Financial: Uninsured deposits were $7.4 billion, or 34% of total deposits, with immediately available liquidity covering about 151% of them. Source
  • Financial: Nonperforming loans rose to 0.27% of total loans from 0.26% in Q4 2025, and were 0.29% at March 31, 2025. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Met: Management said the company achieved its initial operational excellence goal, which provides capacity for further investment. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.