Waterstone Financial, Inc. (WSBF) stock analysis
Close on Nov 11, 2026Market cap $360.98MP/E 11.7Yield 2.99%
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Solid16 of 30 checks passed
Waterstone Financial passes 16 of the 30 checks behind our score; 5 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 5/6
- Growth
- 3/6
- Past performance
- 3/6
- Financial health
- 2/6
- Dividend
- 3/6
What stands out
Trading below fair value
The share price of $20.08 is below our fair value estimate of $20.90.
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 18.5% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings growth accelerating
Net income grew 45.4% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -20.1% a year.
P/E below its 5-year median
Waterstone Financial's P/E of 11.7 is below its own 5-year median of 13.1.
What to watch
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 3.9% below fair value, less than the 20% cushion we look for.
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 8.7% over the last twelve months and averaged 7.5% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Earnings shrank over 5 years
Net income shrank 20.1% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew -4.4% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
Valuation5/6
P/E below its 5-year median
Waterstone Financial's P/E of 11.7 is below its own 5-year median of 13.1.
P/E below the industry
Waterstone Financial's P/E of 11.7 is below the Savings Institutions median of 13.7.
P/S below the industry
Waterstone Financial's price-to-sales of 2.40 is below the Savings Institutions median of 3.77.
P/B below the industry
Waterstone Financial's price-to-book of 1.03 is below the Savings Institutions median of 1.04.
Trading below fair value
The share price of $20.08 is below our fair value estimate of $20.90.
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 3.9% below fair value, less than the 20% cushion we look for.
Growth3/6
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew -4.4% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 18.5% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings growth accelerating
Net income grew 45.4% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -20.1% a year.
Growing faster than the industry
Revenue grew 12.4% over the last twelve months; the Savings Institutions median is 9.0%.
Company guidance
No outlook found in earnings releases from the last twelve months.
Gross margin trend
Banks and insurers do not report gross profit.
Past performance3/6
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 8.7% over the last twelve months and averaged 7.5% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Return on assets over 1%
Return on assets was 1.3%; for a bank or insurer, 1% or more is considered good.
Return on equity above the industry
Waterstone Financial's return on equity of 8.7% is above the Savings Institutions median of 6.1%.
Earnings shrank over 5 years
Net income shrank 20.1% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Net margin above its 5-year average
Net margin was 20.0% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 15.8%.
Net margin below the industry
Waterstone Financial's net margin of 20.0% is below the Savings Institutions median of 20.3%.
Financial health2/6
Well capitalized
Equity is 15.6% of total assets; 8% or more is a comfortable cushion.
Loans funded by deposits
Needs loans and deposits.
Adequate loan-loss reserve
The allowance for credit losses is not reported.
High cost base
Non-interest expense takes 74.9% of revenue; under 60% is efficient for a bank.
Deposits growing
Deposits grew 2.6% over the past year.
Borrowings
Needs debt and equity figures.
Dividend3/6
Pays a dividend
Waterstone Financial paid dividends worth 3.3% of the share price over the last twelve months.
Yield below Treasuries
The 3.3% yield is below the 4.4% on a 1-year Treasury.
Yield below the top quarter
The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 3.8% or more; Waterstone Financial yields 3.3%.
Dividend was cut
The dividend per share fell by more than 10% at least once in the last 9 fiscal years.
Covered by earnings
Dividends take 35.9% of net income.
Covered by free cash flow
Dividends take 25.3% of free cash flow.
Fair value
How we estimate itOur estimate per share
$20.90
The share price is 4% below this estimate.
| Method | Multiple used | Own 5Y median | Industry median | Value per share | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 13.4× | 13.1× | 13.7× | $23.03 | 50% |
| P/B | 1.0× | 0.9× | 1.0× | $18.78 | 50% |
| Fair value | $20.90 | 100% | |||
Valuation over time
Using the earnings and balance sheet published at each date, not today's.
- P/E at month end
- Own 5-year median 13.1
- Savings Institutions median 13.7
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
High risk
- Average value traded per day
- $1.11M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $1.36M
Downside
Low risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 7.1%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 22%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- 1.19
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 0.53
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2011 to 2025
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2025
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | +4.8% | -4.4% | -13.8% | -0.1% | |
| Net income | +41.3% | +10.7% | -20.1% | +4.8% | |
| EPS, diluted | +46.5% | +18.5% | -14.8% | +10.2% | |
| Free cash flow | -51.0% | -51.8% | – | – | |
| Dividend per share | 0.0% | -9.1% | -15.1% | – |
Returns and balance sheet
10 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2016 | FY2020 | FY2025 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | 6.4% | 20.1% | 7.7% | |
| Return on assets | 1.4% | 3.9% | 1.2% | |
| Capex to revenue | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.8% | |
| Diluted shares | 27M | 25M | 18M |
Where the cash went
Fiscal 2021 to 2025, five years combined
Waterstone Financial generated $448.49M from operations and spent $217.65M on capital expenditure, dividends and share buybacks. 2% of that went back into the business.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | 18.6% | 0.06× | 6.49× | 7.7% |
| FY2024 | 13.8% | 0.06× | 6.47× | 5.5% |
| FY2023 | 7.1% | 0.06× | 5.94× | 2.6% |
| FY2022 | 12.0% | 0.08× | 5.29× | 4.9% |
| FY2021 | 27.4% | 0.12× | 5.20× | 16.7% |
| FY2020 | 27.3% | 0.14× | 5.18× | 20.1% |
| FY2019 | 19.6% | 0.09× | 4.93× | 9.1% |
| FY2018 | 17.8% | 0.09× | 4.58× | 7.6% |
| FY2017 | 14.8% | 0.10× | 4.37× | 6.3% |
| FY2016 | 15.0% | 0.10× | 4.43× | 6.4% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2025 against fiscal 2024
- ProfitableNet income above zero$26.40M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero$24.18M
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year0.8% → 1.2%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income$24.18M vs $26.40M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell– → –
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose– → –
- No dilutionShare count did not rise19M → 18M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year– → –
- More efficientAsset turnover rose0.06 → 0.06
See a number that looks wrong?