WaFd, Inc. (WAFD)

WaFd, Inc. reported net income of $256 million for the fiscal year ended 30 September 2026, up 13 percent from $226 million a year earlier 1. Earnings per diluted common share were $3.21, a 22 percent increase on a year earlier 1.

The fourth quarter earned $59,991,000, down 9 percent from the June quarter 1. It carried a $36 million charge-off, the loss a bank books when a loan is written off, after a $53 million loan relationship was resolved 1.

The larger event is a merger: on 6 September 2026 WaFd agreed to combine with EverBank Financial Corp, a Jacksonville, Florida bank holding company owned by private investors 34. After closing, EverBank's owners would hold about 59.175 percent of WaFd's common stock and WaFd's own shareholders about 40.825 percent 3.

WaFd would be renamed EverBank Financial Corp and trade as EVBK, and EverBank would be the accounting acquirer, the side treated as the buyer in the books 2. Chief executive Brent Beardall said WaFd's deposits and commercial real estate lending complement EverBank's online consumer bank and commercial lending 2.

The companies expect closing in early 2027, after WaFd shareholders vote and the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency approve 23. A preliminary proxy statement dated 22 October 2026 left the meeting's record date blank 4.

WaFd Bank was founded on April 24, 1917 in Ballard, Washington 5. The company began trading on Nasdaq on 9 November 1982, and WaFd, Inc. was formed as the bank's holding company in November 1994 5.

The 10-K says the company has recorded profitable operations every year since going public 5. It also reports 170 consecutive quarterly cash dividends as of September 30, 2025, a payout record the company counts in its own annual report 5.

For most of its life the bank was called Washington Federal Bank 5. It formally took the name WaFd Bank effective 25 September 2025 5.

The biggest earlier deal was Luther Burbank Corporation, a California company, whose merger WaFd closed on 29 February 2024, effective 1 March 2024 5. It added about $7.7 billion of assets and ten California branches, which widened the footprint to nine western states 5.

Net interest income, what a bank earns on loans and securities minus what it pays on deposits and borrowings, was $690 million in fiscal 2023, $661 million in 2024 and $654 million in 2025 5. The net interest margin, that gap as a share of earning assets, was 3.40 percent, then 2.69 percent, then 2.58 percent 5.

The 10-K gives the reason for the 2025 slip: the rate earned on assets fell 30 basis points, hundredths of a percentage point, while the rate paid on liabilities fell only 22 5.

Fiscal 2024 included $25 million of merger-related costs, so non-interest expense fell 4.6 percent to $427 million in 2025 5. Net charge-offs, loans written off as uncollectable, were $45.1 million in fiscal 2023, $1.4 million in 2024 and $11.8 million in 2025 5.

In January 2025 the bank announced it would stop making new consumer single family home loans and home equity lines of credit 5. The 10-K counts $5.4 million of restructuring cost from that shift in strategy, and staff fell from 2,208 to 1,979 full-time equivalents 5.

The Puget Sound Business Journal, as carried by MyNorthwest.com, reported that WaFd's "needs to improve" Community Reinvestment Act rating lasted from June 2020 to March 2024 and barred expansion 6.

In fiscal 2026 loan originations for the commercial and consumer loans the bank still writes reached $5.5 billion, against $4.0 billion in fiscal 2025, and commercial loans were 95 percent of them 1.

What the bank does

WaFd Bank takes deposits from the public and lends the money out, mostly against real estate, to consumers, small and large businesses, and property owners and developers 5. On September 30, 2025 it had 208 branches in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, California and Texas 5.

Its main income is interest on loans and on investments 5. At the end of September 2026 it had 210 branches in nine western states and $21.3 billion of customer deposits, 60.4 percent of them in transaction accounts such as checking 1.

Commercial lending

Commercial loans were 59.5 percent of the $21.3 billion gross loan book at September 30, 2025 5. Multi-family apartment loans were 22.2 percent, commercial real estate 16.9 percent, business loans 11.2 percent and construction 8.3 percent 5.

The bank says it sells business banking, SBA lending, commercial lending and commercial real estate lending through its branch network and community ties 2. Within commercial real estate, 83 percent of loans were on properties not occupied by the owner 5.

Consumer lending, being wound down

Single family residential loans were still 37.9 percent of gross loans at September 30, 2025, and all consumer loans 40.5 percent 5. The bank sold $543 million of single family loans in the latest quarter 1.

It has agreed to sell $429 million of multifamily loans in the first quarter of fiscal 2027 and expects a net gain of about $7 million 1. Those loans were moved to held for sale at September 30, 2026 1.

Insurance and wealth

The bank also runs insurance brokerage through WaFd Insurance Group, Inc., and wealth management through WaFd Wealth, Inc. 5. Non-interest income rose 17.4 percent to $71.2 million in fiscal 2025, helped by loan prepayment fees and commissions at the insurance arm 5.

Credit quality and problems

Non-performing assets, loans and property the bank is no longer being paid on, fell to $86 million, or 0.32 percent of total assets, from $136 million at June 30, 2026 1. Delinquent loans fell to 0.50 percent of total loans from 0.75 percent 1.

Net charge-offs were $39.2 million in the September quarter, against $1.6 million in the June quarter 1. The 10-K says legal proceedings in the ordinary course are believed immaterial, and it names fintech companies, credit unions and other banks among its rivals 5.

People and place

WaFd is headquartered in Seattle and owns the building holding its principal executive offices 5. It employed 2,037 full and part time people at September 30, 2025, and none were covered by a collective bargaining agreement 5.

Brent Beardall is vice chairman, president and chief executive officer, and Kelli Holz is executive vice president and chief financial officer 74.

The umbrella, in words

The brands are WaFd Bank, WaFd Insurance Group and WaFd Wealth 5. WaFd, Inc. is the holding company and WaFd Bank is its wholly owned bank 5. Luther Burbank Savings was merged into the bank after that deal closed 5.

The 10-K's properties section names only the owned headquarters building and certain branch properties 5. No mine, plant or acreage is described there 5.

The preliminary proxy lists BlackRock as owning beneficially 14.6 percent of WaFd common stock, Vanguard 11.8 percent, Dimensional Fund Advisors 6.7 percent, State Street 5.9 percent and AllianceBernstein 5.2 percent as of September 30, 2026 4.

Each share of common stock carries one vote 4. After the merger the proxy shows funds managed by Stone Point Capital and Warburg Pincus each beneficially owning 13.4 percent of the combined company 4. Reverence Capital would own 10.0 percent, Sixth Street 8.6 percent and Bayview Asset Management 7.1 percent 4.

The merger agreement is dated 6 September 2026, and either side may end it if the merger is not complete by 6 September 2027 3. The companies expect closing in early 2027 2.

WaFd shareholders will be asked to approve the issue of WaFd shares in the merger, to approve merger-related pay for named executives in an advisory vote, and to allow an adjournment if needed 4. The stock issuance needs a majority of the votes cast 4.

Approvals are also needed from the Federal Reserve Board, the OCC and the State of Washington, and the companies say applications have been submitted 4. WaFd would owe EverBank a $101,060,629 termination fee in certain circumstances 3.

WaFd estimates about 107.7 million shares of its common stock would be issued at closing 3. Shares received by EverBank holders would be released from transfer limits in steps: 10 percent after 30 days, 10 percent after 90 days, 40 percent after 180 days and 40 percent after 12 months 3.

The combined board would have 13 directors, seven from legacy EverBank and six from WaFd, with Robert Radway as chairman, Greg Seibly as chief executive and Brent Beardall as president 3. Those seats run until the fourth anniversary of closing 3.

The companies expect a return on tangible common equity of approximately 15 percent after full realization of cost synergies, and 2027 earnings per share accretion of approximately 29 percent for WaFd shareholders 2. These are the companies' own projections, not the desk's 2.

Beardall said in the results release that WaFd's assets are expected to reprice more quickly than its liabilities, expanding the margin over the short term 1. He told employees on 22 October 2026 that jobs and roles would be settled by the end of December 7.

WaFd's share repurchase plan had an authorization of 7,992,669 shares at September 30, 2026 1. The company paid its 174th consecutive quarterly dividend, $0.27 per share, on 4 September 2026 1.