WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) reported fourth-quarter 2025 results that management said showed “strong momentum moving into 2026,” highlighted by higher profitability metrics, broad-based loan and deposit growth, and improving problem asset trends. Chief Financial Officer David Burg led the call alongside Chairman, President and CEO Rodger Levenson and Chief Operating Officer Art Bacci.
Quarterly and full-year performance
For the fourth quarter, the company reported core earnings per share of $1.43, core return on assets (ROA) of 1.42%, and core return on tangible common equity (ROTCE) of 18%, which Burg said were “all up meaningfully on a year-over-year basis.” For full-year 2025, WSFS posted core EPS of $5.21, core ROA of 1.39%, and core ROTCE of 18%.
Net interest margin, deposit repricing, and fee revenue
Net interest margin (NIM) was 3.83% in the fourth quarter, down 8 basis points from the prior quarter. Burg attributed the decline to rate cuts and a one-time interest recovery in the third quarter that accounted for 4 basis points of the linked-quarter decline. He emphasized that NIM was up 3 basis points year over year despite absorbing 75 basis points of rate cuts since the fourth quarter of 2024.
Management highlighted continued deposit repricing progress, including a December exit deposit beta of 43%. On the fee side, core fee revenue increased 2% from the prior quarter and 8% year over year, driven by “double-digit growth in wealth and trust, capital markets, and home lending,” Burg said.
Wealth and trust revenue grew 13% year over year, with WSFS Institutional Services up 29% and BMT of Delaware up 24%, according to management. Burg also noted that WSFS Institutional Services ranked as the fourth most active U.S. asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities trustee in 2025, with nearly 12% market share, moving up two spots versus 2024.
Loan and deposit growth trends
Total gross loans grew 2% from the prior quarter, or 9% annualized, which management said was driven by “broad-based growth.” Commercial loan growth was led by C&I, which increased 4% linked quarter, or 15% annualized, and Burg said the company saw its largest quarterly fundings in more than two years.
Residential mortgage and WSFS-originated consumer loans grew 5% linked quarter, continuing what Burg described as strong momentum. Total client deposits increased 2% linked quarter, or 10% annualized, with growth across trust, private banking, and consumer. Non-interest-bearing deposits rose 6% linked quarter and ended the year at 32% of total client deposits.
In response to analyst questions, Burg said the strong commercial loan activity followed a period of uncertainty earlier in 2025, with small business owners delaying decisions amid pending tax and legislative issues. As conditions “crystallized,” he said, the pipeline built and helped drive stronger originations and fundings in the fourth quarter.
On deposit composition, Burg said non-interest-bearing deposit growth in the quarter was driven primarily by trust and private banking, though the balance is “pretty broad-based” across the franchise. He broke down the company’s non-interest-bearing deposits as roughly 40% consumer, 35% trust and private banking, and 25% commercial.
Asset quality and capital return
WSFS reported what Burg called a “meaningful improvement” in problem assets due to favorable migration and payoffs, ending 2025 at the lowest level in more than two years. Non-performing assets were essentially flat versus the prior quarter and were down approximately 40% compared with year-end 2024.
Delinquencies increased 46 basis points linked quarter, which management attributed to previously identified non-performing and problem assets moving into delinquent status. Burg said 14 basis points of the increase was driven by non-performing loans, with the remainder primarily tied to two office loans and one multifamily condo loan in the company’s footprint. One of the office loans was resolved in January, and the other—described as a medical office loan—is expected to be sold in the first half of 2026, which management said would result in full repayment.
Net charge-offs rose 16 basis points to 46 basis points of average loans, primarily due to a partial charge-off of a non-performing land development loan. Burg said net charge-offs were 40 basis points for the year excluding Upstart, which he characterized as the midpoint of prior guidance.
On capital return, WSFS returned $119 million during the quarter, including $109 million of share repurchases representing 3.7% of outstanding shares. Full-year buybacks totaled $288 million, or more than 9% of outstanding shares. In discussing buyback parameters, Burg said management primarily considers CET1 and tangible common equity (which incorporates AOCI volatility), and may accelerate repurchases when the stock price provides an opportunity, while retaining flexibility to slow buybacks in the event of stress or to pursue investment opportunities.
2026 outlook: rate cuts assumed, margin tools, and growth targets
Management’s 2026 outlook assumes a stable economy and three 25-basis-point rate cuts (March, July, and December). WSFS expects a full-year core ROA of approximately 1.40% and double-digit growth in core EPS; Burg later clarified on the call that the double-digit growth target is “core relative to core.”
Key elements of the company’s outlook included:
- Loans: Mid-single-digit loan growth overall, with low single-digit growth in consumer loans. Management expects continued momentum in residential mortgage and other real estate-secured consumer loans, partially offset by runoff in the Spring EQ partnership portfolio.
- Deposits: Mid-single-digit deposit growth from fourth-quarter levels, with broad-based contribution across businesses.
- NIM: Approximately 3.80% for the year, incorporating the assumed rate cuts. Burg cited deposit repricing, the hedge program, and securities portfolio strategy as key levers.
- Credit: Net charge-offs expected at 35 to 45 basis points of average loans, with commercial losses potentially “uneven.”
- Efficiency: An efficiency ratio in the high 50s, with continued expense discipline alongside selective investment in talent and technology.
Burg said WSFS expects to maintain an interest-bearing deposit beta in the low- to mid-40% range. He also provided an update on hedging, noting the company has about $1.3 billion of hedges currently “in the money,” rising to $1.5 billion with another rate cut. On the securities portfolio, he said WSFS intends to keep the portfolio roughly flat at current levels (about 21% of assets) and reinvest cash flows into similar agency and mortgage-backed securities, adding that the current portfolio yield of roughly 2.35% to 2.4% can be reinvested at about 4.3% to 4.4%.
Executives also discussed Cash Connect, where revenue is expected to decline due to lower interest rates, but Burg said the company expects the revenue pressure to be “more than offset in expenses.” He estimated Cash Connect’s top-line impact at roughly $2.5 million annually per 25-basis-point rate cut, while emphasizing ongoing initiatives to improve profitability through pricing actions, expense optimization, and a mix shift toward higher-margin smart safes.
On strategy, Levenson said WSFS continues to evaluate business lines through an internal initiative called “Relook,” following several exits in 2025 from what management described as lower-scale or lower-profitability partnerships. Levenson added that the company remains open to inorganic opportunities, including traditional bank M&A that strengthens its position in the greater Philadelphia and Delaware region, while emphasizing confidence in the company’s organic growth path.
About WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS)
WSFS Financial Corporation is the bank holding company for WSFS Bank, a regional financial institution headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware. The company traces its roots to the Safe Deposit & Trust Company, founded in 1832, and formally organized as WSFS Financial in the mid-1980s. Over its long history, WSFS has grown through a combination of organic expansion and selective acquisitions to serve a broad base of individual, commercial and institutional clients.
WSFS Bank offers a full suite of banking and financial services, including retail and commercial deposit accounts, commercial and industrial lending, real estate financing, and treasury management solutions.
