Oct 20, 2026 earnings call — Record quarter: loan and deposit growth
Wintrust reported its seventh consecutive quarter of record net income, at $239 million for the third quarter.
Revenue $0.8B (est $0.8B) · EPS $3.37 (est $3.31)
Key quotes
"Both loans and deposits grew at an annualized rate of 8% for the third quarter."
"The net interest margin should remain stable plus or minus 3.5%."
"CRE nonperforming loans declined from 12 basis points to 9 basis points."
Analyst Q&A 14
lending pipelines and deposit pricing
Q (Jon Arfstrom · RBC): Analyst asked if lending pipelines are strengthening and what drove CRE growth this quarter. He also asked about drivers of deposit growth and how deposit costs stayed steady.
A: Management said pipelines look good and they are taking market share in their regions. CRE growth this quarter was mainly timing and came from larger owner-occupied and investor deals with long standing relationships. Deposit growth was more commercial than retail, branch openings are starting to help, and they controlled interest-bearing deposit costs well.
"The thing about real estate too for us is that you know, these are not, you know, transactional deals." — Richard Murphy (CHAIR)
noninterest deposits and rate impact
Q (Daniel Tamayo · Raymond James): Analyst asked why noninterest bearing deposits declined as a percent and whether they can hold that level. He also asked if recent and possible future rate hikes are affecting borrowers and future loan growth.
A: Management said they are growing total deposits quickly and doing so at a reasonable cost, so the mix can shift as customers dictate. They prefer the noninterest share to stay around 19% and will try to hold it, and many of the new deposits are commercial. On rates, they do not yet see a material impact: Midwest customers have been resilient and most loans reprice or mature within a year.
"We are growing the denominator rapidly and doing that at a reasonable cost." — Timothy S. Crane (CEO)
margin bias and branch impact
Q (Ben Gerlinger · Citi): Analyst asked why management is not more positive on margin despite repricing tailwinds and swaps. He also asked what branch expansion should mean for deposit mix.
A: Management said they have swaps hedging part of the floating SOFR portfolio and that if deposit rates lag and SOFR moves up they have a slight bias to higher margin, but many factors influence it. Branch openings (5–6) are small versus 210 branches, so they will add households and retail deposits but not change trajectory dramatically.
"An up rate environment, we have a slight bias to an increased margin, but a lot of moving parts there." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
rate sensitivity and loan pricing
Q (Nathan Race · Piper Sandler): Analyst asked why the sensitivity table shows higher rates as a bigger headwind to NII compared to June. He also asked about loan production coupons in CRE versus portfolio yield.
A: Management said the sensitivity assumes instantaneous deposit repricing and is conservative; if deposit rates lag the impact would be closer to neutral. On loan pricing, competition has pressured fully funded CRE but that pressure has stabilized; they like to be around 6.5% on opportunities and will pass on deals without appropriate pricing.
"So this is a conservative view of the world and really the impact of that is deposit lagging." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
expenses outlook and need for scale
Q (Terence McEvoy · Wells Fargo): Analyst asked for fourth quarter expense outlook after the FDIC recovery and early thoughts on 2027 expense growth. He also asked whether the bank needs more scale to keep outperforming in Chicago.
A: Management said the FDIC recovery was in Q2 so Q3 was clean and they expect Q4 expenses to be roughly the same. Without acquisitions they expect expenses to grow mid single digits annually if loan growth is mid to high single digits. They do not think they need more scale; their relationship model and technology let them compete effectively.
"I would expect it to be roughly the same in the fourth quarter." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
deposit beta and M&A activity
Q (Casey Haire · Autonomous): Analyst asked whether deposit betas this cycle will mirror the prior cycle (around 60%+) and for an update on M&A opportunities in their markets.
A: Management said historically betas run about 60%–65% on the way up and down and they expect similar behavior this cycle. For M&A they still have conversations, mainly with smaller banks exploring exits; larger deals remain few.
"60% to 65% has sort of been the beta on the ways up and the way down." — Timothy S. Crane (CEO)
premium finance outlook and AOCI
Q (David Chiaverini · Jefferies): Analyst asked if softness in premium finance P&C could push loan growth to the low end of mid-to-high single digits and if the AOCI increase affects lending or growth decisions.
A: Management said premium finance is softer but they still expect positive growth and to take share; they are optimistic about that business and their technology helps. On AOCI, it does not affect their ability to do deals; it was one quarter and some recovery has already occurred.
"I am pretty optimistic about that business right now." — Richard Murphy (CHAIR)
deposit spot cost and mortgages
Q (Janet Lee · TD Cowen): Analyst asked for clarification on the spot deposit cost versus the 60% beta comment, and whether residential mortgage volumes will keep growing given current rates. She also asked if premium finance repricing will still hurt NIM in Q4.
A: Management said 60%–65% is the through-the-cycle beta while initial deposit response is lower and works up; spot deposit rates were about 4–5 basis points higher than the Q3 average. Mortgages should grow gradually but seasonality and rates keep volumes muted; the 1 basis point negative from premium finance affected Q3 and should be done, and rising rates should help pricing.
"Spot rates were just slightly higher 4 or 5 basis points higher than the average for the third quarter." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
capital use and mortgage outlook
Q (Chris McGratty · KBW): Analyst asked if buybacks become more likely given higher capital and Basel III help, and what near-term mortgage contribution they expect.
A: Management said once they get north of 10.5 they would more materially consider other capital uses and will be looking at options in Q4 and into 2027. For mortgages, Q4 is typically soft and with higher rates they expect originations to be low due to seasonality, though servicing income cushions revenue.
"I think fourth quarter and into 2027, we will be looking at other ways to deploy capital." — Timothy S. Crane (CEO)
sub debt, premium finance NPAs, Michigan share
Q (Jeff Rulis · D.A. Davidson): Analyst asked if retiring higher rate subordinated debt affects margin, whether the uptick in premium finance nonperformers signals credit issues, and about the small Michigan deposit market share tick down.
A: Management said the sub-debt paydown is small ($100 million on a $76 billion balance sheet) and may add about 1 basis point to margin, so immaterial. The premium finance uptick is an administrative past due over 90 days, still accruing, not a loss. The Michigan market-share data are dated and reflect conversion timing; they see continued momentum there.
"So it is it is not a big impact, but, you know, maybe it adds 1 basis point to the margin." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
wealth deposits and margin constraints
Q (Jared Shaw · Barclays): Analyst asked how much deposit growth came from the wealth/guardianship acquisition and what would need to change for management to be more confident in a higher margin.
A: Management said the guardianship deal adds a very small number of deposits and will not materially change deposit totals, though wealth is moving in the right direction. The main thing holding back margin optimism is competitive pricing in the market; they hope for improvement but will not rely on it.
"The guardianship deal brings a very, very small number of deposits." — Timothy S. Crane (CEO)
guardianship AUM and regional growth
Q (Brendan Nosal · Hovde Group): Analyst asked revenue and expense impact from adding $1.2 billion AUM in guardianship services, what investments are needed to integrate it, expected AUM fees, and where the biggest deposit share opportunity is outside Chicago.
A: Management said they brought over $1.2 billion AUM, put the business on their systems (not the other group's technology) to gain leverage and market position. They did not disclose full details, but guardianship fees are roughly around 1% which gives a sense of revenue. They plan to grow across Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana and will add households via disciplined branch fill-ins.
"Generally, it is about a 1% fee range plus or minus." — David Alan Dykstra (COO)
industrial CRE growth source
Q (Brandon Rud · Stephens): Analyst asked whether industrial CRE growth is from new customers or existing customers increasing investment.
A: Management said growth is a combination of both: new opportunities including wins from larger banks and deeper investment from long-time customers. They believe they underwrite these deals well and feel good about that asset class and sponsors.
"We think we are pretty good at underwriting those opportunities, and definitely an asset class we feel pretty good about." — Richard Murphy (CHAIR)
CRE payoff activity and competition
Q (Timur Braziler · UBS): Analyst asked if payoff activity has slowed and how they balance CRE exposure with rising rates, and whether competitors are stretching pricing or structure.
A: Management said payoff activity was pretty consistent through the first three quarters but might slow as borrowers hold properties while markets normalize. They keep a disciplined CRE mix (roughly thirds across businesses), underwrite conservatively, and like their portfolio and sponsors. Competition remains, though it has moderated from prior extremes and deals must clear their hurdles and bring relationship value.
"Payoff activity, it was pretty consistent over the first 3 quarters." — Richard Murphy (CHAIR)