17 Outstanding Banks Recognized for Best-In-Class Earnings Growth Over the Past Decade
NEW YORK, April 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., a leading specialist investment bank to the financial services and fintech sectors, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF), today named 17 U.S. banking institutions, just 6% of eligible banks, to the coveted 2026 KBW Bank Honor Roll.
KBW congratulates the 10 returning members to this year’s Honor Roll, including 1st Source Corporation (SRCE), BancFirst Corporation (BANF), Coastal Financial Corporation (CCB), Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (ESQ), First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (FCNCA), HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. (HTB), Magyar Bancorp, Inc. (MGYR), Northeast Bank (NBN), NorthEast Community Bancorp, Inc. (NECB), and Pathward Financial, Inc. (CASH).
Two of these banks have consistently been named to the KBW Bank Honor Roll, including BANF (14 consecutive years), and SRCE (eight consecutive years).
In addition, KBW welcomes seven new members to the Honor Roll this year, including: Amalgamated Financial Corp. (AMAL), CF Bankshares Inc. (CFBK), Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (LOB), Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (MCB), Orange County Bancorp, Inc. (OBT), Popular, Inc. (BPOP), and Wintrust Financial Corporation (WTFC).
These 17 elite banks were named to the KBW Bank Honor Roll based on two central criteria: 1) consistent earnings growth over each of the past 10 years; and/or 2) top 5% of eligible banks based on 10-year EPS CAGR. As with prior Honor Rolls, banks must have more than $500 million in total assets to be eligible. Two banks, CASH and ESQ, had the elite distinction of satisfying both criteria.
“This year’s Honor Roll banks continue to demonstrate peer-leading fundamentals across the business cycle, and the market is rightfully rewarding these banks with premium valuations,” said Thomas B. Michaud, KBW President and CEO. “We congratulate the 2026 class of Honor Roll banks for this distinguished accomplishment.”
Over the five-year period ending in 2025, KBW Bank Honor Roll stocks yielded a total return of 172%, significantly outperforming both the KBW Nasdaq Bank Index (BKX, 96%) and the KBW Nasdaq Regional Banking Index (KRX, 53%).
Christopher McGratty, KBW’s Head of U.S. Banks Research, added, “Consistency remains a key differentiator of the most successful banks and a characteristic that is contributing to notable stock outperformance for this year’s Honor Roll banks.”
About KBW
KBW (Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., operating in the U.S., and Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited, also trading as Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Europe, operating in Europe) is a Stifel company. Over the years, KBW has established itself as a leading independent authority in the banking, insurance, brokerage, asset management, mortgage banking, and specialty finance sectors. Founded in 1962, the firm maintains industry‐leading positions in the areas of research, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions as well as sales and trading in equities securities of financial services companies.
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