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Merchants Bancorp: Q2 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q2 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 28 July 2026: press release. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Net income surged year-over-year: Net income of $78.3 million in Q2 2026 increased $40.3 million or 106% from Q2 2025, and increased $10.6 million or 16% from Q1 2026. Source
  • Diluted earnings per share increased substantially: Diluted EPS of $1.48 in Q2 2026 increased 147% from $0.60 in Q2 2025 and increased 18% from $1.25 in Q1 2026. Source
  • Provision for credit losses dropped sharply: Provision for credit losses of $9.2 million decreased 83% from Q2 2025 and 40% from Q1 2026, reflecting improved asset quality including lower charge-offs. Source
  • Criticized loans declined meaningfully: Criticized loans receivable of $444.7 million decreased $60.8 million or 12% from Q1 2026 and $63.5 million or 12% from December 2025, representing fifth consecutive quarterly decline and lowest level since mid-2024. Source
  • Nonperforming loans decreased substantially: Nonperforming loans of $205.6 million decreased $41.8 million or 17% from Q1 2026, representing 1.67% of loans receivable compared to 2.16% in prior quarter. Source
  • Total assets reached new high: Total assets of $21.2 billion increased $908.2 million or 4% from Q1 2026 and $1.8 billion or 9% from December 2025, marking fifth consecutive quarterly record high. Source
  • Tangible book value per share hit 30th record: Tangible book value per common share increased to $39.93, its 30th consecutive quarterly high, rising 13% from $35.42 at June 2025 and 4% from $38.55 at March 2026. Source
  • Total deposits increased substantially: Total deposits of $14.3 billion increased $1.3 billion or 10% from Q1 2026 and $1.2 billion or 9% from December 2025, with growth driven primarily by core deposits. Source
  • Net interest margin compressed: Net interest margin of 2.81% decreased 11 basis points from Q1 2026 and 2 basis points from Q2 2025, primarily driven by loan mix shift toward lower-yielding warehouse and loans held for sale. Source
  • Capital ratios remained strong: Total capital ratio of 12.5% reflected continued emphasis on balance sheet resilience, with Common Equity Tier I capital ratio of 9.3% and Tier I capital ratio of 12.1%. Source
  • Liquidity totaled $13.0 billion: Total liquidity of $13.0 billion or 61% of total assets comprised $5.5 billion unused borrowing capacity with FHLB and Federal Reserve, plus cash, short-term investments, and liquid loan portfolios. Source

“Our second quarter results reflected continued strength across our businesses, highlighted by assets reaching a new high of $21.2 billion and tangible book value per share of $39.93, marking our 30th consecutive quarter of record tangible book value.”

Michael F. Petrie, Chairman and CEO of Merchants

Net Income and Earnings Growth

  • Net income surged year-over-year: Net income of $78.3 million in Q2 2026 increased $40.3 million or 106% from Q2 2025, and increased $10.6 million or 16% from Q1 2026. Source
  • Diluted earnings per share increased substantially: Diluted EPS of $1.48 in Q2 2026 increased 147% from $0.60 in Q2 2025 and increased 18% from $1.25 in Q1 2026. Source
  • Provision for credit losses dropped sharply: Provision for credit losses of $9.2 million decreased 83% from Q2 2025 and 40% from Q1 2026, reflecting improved asset quality including lower charge-offs. Source

Asset Quality and Credit Improvement

  • Criticized loans declined meaningfully: Criticized loans receivable of $444.7 million decreased $60.8 million or 12% from Q1 2026 and $63.5 million or 12% from December 2025, representing fifth consecutive quarterly decline and lowest level since mid-2024. Source
  • Nonperforming loans decreased substantially: Nonperforming loans of $205.6 million decreased $41.8 million or 17% from Q1 2026, representing 1.67% of loans receivable compared to 2.16% in prior quarter. Source
  • Delinquent loans declined: Total delinquent loans of $208.0 million decreased $34.6 million or 14% from Q1 2026, with 10% covered by credit default swaps. Source

“With 10-year Treasury rates remaining elevated, our diversified business model continues to create multiple sources of earnings support in the current rate environment.”

Michael J. Dunlap, President and Chief Operating Officer of Merchants

Balance Sheet and Tangible Book Value

  • Total assets reached new high: Total assets of $21.2 billion increased $908.2 million or 4% from Q1 2026 and $1.8 billion or 9% from December 2025, marking fifth consecutive quarterly record high. Source
  • Tangible book value per share hit 30th record: Tangible book value per common share increased to $39.93, its 30th consecutive quarterly high, rising 13% from $35.42 at June 2025 and 4% from $38.55 at March 2026. Source
  • Loans receivable grew substantially: Loans receivable net of allowance for credit losses totaled $12.3 billion, increasing $862.9 million or 8% from Q1 2026 and $1.3 billion or 12% from December 2025. Source

Deposits and Core Funding Growth

  • Total deposits increased substantially: Total deposits of $14.3 billion increased $1.3 billion or 10% from Q1 2026 and $1.2 billion or 9% from December 2025, with growth driven primarily by core deposits. Source
  • Core deposits strengthened: Core deposits of $13.0 billion increased $891.3 million or 7% from Q1 2026 and represented 91% of total deposits, improving from 87% at December 2025. Source
  • Brokered deposits increased: Brokered deposits of $1.3 billion increased $411.3 million or 46% from Q1 2026 and decreased $459.5 million or 26% from December 2025, with weighted average remaining duration of 51 days. Source

Net Interest Income and Margin Pressure

  • Net interest income improved: Net interest income of $136.5 million increased $7.8 million or 6% from Q2 2025 and $7.9 million or 6% from Q1 2026, reflecting lower interest expense on deposits and borrowings. Source
  • Net interest margin compressed: Net interest margin of 2.81% decreased 11 basis points from Q1 2026 and 2 basis points from Q2 2025, primarily driven by loan mix shift toward lower-yielding warehouse and loans held for sale. Source
  • Interest rate spread improved slightly: Interest rate spread of 2.43% increased 10 basis points from Q2 2025 but decreased 7 basis points from Q1 2026. Source

Noninterest Income and Operating Efficiency

  • Noninterest income declined from year ago: Noninterest income of $45.7 million decreased $4.8 million or 10% from Q2 2025, primarily due to $10.2 million decrease in gain on sale of loans, partially offset by higher servicing fees. Source
  • Gain on sale of loans fell: Gain on sale of loans of $13.2 million decreased $10.2 million or 44% from Q2 2025, with higher 10-year Treasury rates delaying borrower decisions to transition to permanent fixed-rate loans. Source
  • Loan servicing fees increased significantly: Loan servicing fees of $12.0 million increased $5.9 million or 95% from Q2 2025, including $6.0 million positive fair market value adjustment to servicing rights from elevated Treasury rates. Source
  • Efficiency ratio improved: Efficiency ratio of 40.20% improved 296 basis points from 43.16% in Q1 2026 and 296 basis points from Q2 2025, reflecting operational leverage. Source

Capital Strength and Liquidity Position

  • Capital ratios remained strong: Total capital ratio of 12.5% reflected continued emphasis on balance sheet resilience, with Common Equity Tier I capital ratio of 9.3% and Tier I capital ratio of 12.1%. Source
  • Liquidity totaled $13.0 billion: Total liquidity of $13.0 billion or 61% of total assets comprised $5.5 billion unused borrowing capacity with FHLB and Federal Reserve, plus cash, short-term investments, and liquid loan portfolios. Source
  • Expanded credit protection program: Company executed credit default swap on $169.9 million pool of multi-family mortgage loans in June 2026 to reduce credit risk and risk-based capital requirements. Source

Risks management discussed

  • Demand: Higher 10-year Treasury rates may pressure near-term gain on sale of loans as rates delay borrower transitions to permanent fixed-rate loans. Source
  • Financial: Net interest margin compression due to loan mix shift toward lower-yielding warehouse loans and loans held for sale versus higher-yielding multi-family and healthcare portfolios. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • On track: Fifth consecutive quarterly decline in criticized loans reflects company expectation that migration to criticized status would stabilize and eventually subside through portfolio management efforts. Source
  • On track: Company continues loan sale and securitization activities since 2019 and has executed credit protection arrangements through credit default swaps and credit-linked notes since 2023. 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.