Stocks/TFSL

TFSL

TFS Financial Corporation
Financial Services·Banks - Regional
$15.91
$4.5B market cap
Claude Rating
3/10SELL
Revenue
$814.4M
Free Cash Flow
$82.3M
Rev Growth
+5.1%
FCF Margin
10.1%
P/FCF
54.2x
EV/FCF
116.3x
Fwd EV/EBITDA
76.4x
Fair Value
$9.50
Upside
-40.3%

TFS Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides retail consumer banking services in the United States. Its deposit products include savings, money market, checking, individual retirement, and other qualified plan accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides residential real estate mortgage loans, residential construction loans, and home equity loans and lines of credit, as well as purchase mortgages and first mortgage refinance loans. In addition, it offe

2-Year Price History

$15.97+51.8%
$11$12$13$14$15volJun 24Oct 24Jan 25May 25Sep 25Jan 26May 26

Quarterly Financials & Projections

Quarterly Waterfall ($ M)
PeriodRevEBITDAOpInNIOCFFCFCapExCashDebtSharesROICIntCovEV/EBITDA
Est2028-Q1218.033.8--26.2--48.0-1.5191.0----------
Est2027-Q4216.034.6--24.8---6.5-1.9143.0----------
Est2027-Q3213.032.0--23.4--29.8-1.7149.5----------
Est2027-Q2214.033.2--24.6--21.4-1.7119.7----------
Est2027-Q1212.031.8--24.4--42.4-1.598.3----------
Est2026-Q4210.032.6--23.1---10.5-1.955.9----------
Est2026-Q3205.029.7--21.5--24.6-1.666.4----------
Est2026-Q2208.031.2--22.9--16.6-1.741.8----------
Act2026-Q2202.929.829.823.317.613.4-4.325.15,128279.91.6%0.3x69.2x
Act2026-Q1205.828.528.522.358.857.1-1.7481.24,940283.31.6%0.2x61.2x
Act2025-Q4207.238.732.426.0-11.1-13.3-2.1483.54,901279.81.9%0.3x58.5x
Act2025-Q3198.533.327.421.526.825.0-1.7502.84,913279.71.6%0.3x62.0x
Act2025-Q2193.032.126.521.021.214.3-7.0513.94,615279.71.6%0.3x61.0x
Act2025-Q1193.333.728.422.445.644.9-0.6973.64,696279.61.7%0.3x59.1x
Act2024-Q4194.928.023.118.2-58.7-59.4-0.7990.04,822279.41.4%0.2x61.2x
Act2024-Q3191.230.225.220.096.795.9-0.81,0834,846279.21.5%0.3x60.3x
Act2024-Q2189.230.425.920.714.213.4-0.81,1154,981279.11.5%0.3x68.5x
Act2024-Q1183.530.726.120.736.335.6-0.71,0775,060279.01.5%0.3x65.3x
Act2023-Q4173.828.223.519.613.812.8-1.1975.15,303278.81.3%0.3x70.3x
Act2023-Q3162.526.421.817.633.832.2-1.6949.55,469278.61.1%0.3x66.3x
Act2023-Q2152.924.620.015.9-35.7-36.2-0.5903.75,232278.51.1%0.3x68.2x
Act2023-Q1144.132.328.122.278.876.9-2.0916.75,016278.51.6%0.5x62.4x
Act2022-Q4125.437.431.225.4-12.2-13.4-1.2827.54,823278.51.9%0.8x65.5x
Act2022-Q3108.527.921.217.210.49.6-0.8837.44,265278.61.4%0.9x--
Act2022-Q299.126.319.415.933.032.6-0.4813.93,588278.81.5%0.9x--
Act2022-Q1100.227.520.316.17.77.4-0.3831.93,216278.91.7%0.8x--
Historical Valuation

Multiples vs the company's own history — cheap or rich relative to itself? Historical fiscal years, then TTM, then forward projections (E). Forward rows hold today's price against projected earnings, so the multiple compresses if the company grows into it.

YearPriceRev GrEBITDA %EBITDAEV/EBITDAEV/FCFP/EP/S
202210.9127.5%11964.0×210.5×48.7×8.4×
202312.12+46.2%17.6%11167.5×87.9×42.5×5.0×
202411.30+19.8%15.7%11961.5×85.8×44.0×4.6×
202513.11+4.4%17.4%13858.6×113.8×40.2×4.6×
TTM15.91+5.4%16.0%1300.0×0.0×0.0×0.0×
2027E15.91+5.0%0.1%10.0×0.0×0.0×0.0×

EBITDA in reporting-currency $M. Historical multiples use year-end market cap (split-adjusted price history); TTM & forward years use today's.

AI Analysis

LLM Evaluations

Claude3/10SELLFV: $9.50

TFSL is a structurally disadvantaged equity position for public shareholders. The 81% MHC ownership effectively prevents any activist intervention, takeover premium, or meaningful capital return beyond the current dividend. While the ~8% dividend yield (subsidized by MHC waivers) provides income, the stock trades at ~44x earnings for a thrift generating 1.6% ROIC with stagnant EPS, razor-thin NIM, and $5.6B in unfunded HELOC commitments. Insider selling, a massive CEO retention grant, and a thin credit loss allowance (0.47%) all suggest the risk-reward is skewed negatively. The market cap of $3.8B on a business earning ~$90M annually is extremely generous for a regional thrift with no growth levers. Fair value is significantly below the current price when properly discounting for the MHC governance trap and lack of earnings growth.

Catalyst A potential second-step conversion (MHC to full stock company) would unlock enormous value by eliminating the governance discount and creating a takeover target, but there is zero indication management intends to pursue this. Absent that, there is no clear positive catalyst — the stock is a yield vehicle with negative total return potential if rates move adversely.
Risk The $5.6B in unfunded HELOC commitments represents a massive contingent liquidity risk; a housing downturn or rate shock could simultaneously increase drawdowns, spike delinquencies, and strain the bank's thin capital buffer, while the 0.47% ACL provides minimal cushion.
Trend
STABLE
Mgmt
4/10
Quarter
5/10
Exp. Move
-2.0%

Valuation & Metrics

Market Stats

Price$15.91
Market Cap$4.5B
Enterprise Value$9.6B
P/S Ratio5.5x
P/FCF54.2x
EV/FCF116.3x
FCF Margin (TTM)10.1%
FCF Yield1.8%
Dividend Yield (TTM)7.1%
Annual Dilution0.1%
CurrencyUSD

TTM Financial Snapshot

Revenue$814.4M
Net Income$93.0M
Free Cash Flow$82.3M

Revenue Growth (YoY)+5.1%
EBITDA Margin16.0%
Net Margin11.4%
FCF Margin10.1%
CapEx % of Revenue1.2%
SBC % of Revenue1.3%
ROIC1.7%
WC Change % Rev-0.1%
Interest Coverage0.3x

DCF Fair Value Estimate

$0.27
-98.3% upside
Fair Enterprise Value$751M
− Net Debt$5.1B
= Fair Equity$75M
Revenue Growth3.1% → 2.0%
FCF Margin10.1% → 10.0%
Discount Rate14.0%
Terminal EV/FCF8.0x

Forward Outlook & Risk

Short Interest

Short % of Float3.0%
Short Shares8.4M
Days to Cover12.2
Change (vs Prior)+4.9%
Short % Float History
3.00%+1.70pp
1.5%2.0%2.5%3.0%04-3007-1509-1511-1401-1504-30

Options

Call IV (ATM)15%
Put IV (ATM)--
ATM Spread2.2%
Call $OI (near money)$438K
Put $OI (near money)$4K
ATM ExpiryJuly 17, 2026 (56D)
ATM Strike$15.0
Major Expirations3
Near-money chain · July 17, 2026
StrikeCall Bid/AskCall OIPut Bid/AskPut OI
$7.50$7.60/$9.900--/$0.750
$10.00$5.10/$7.40100--/$0.050
$12.50$2.70/$5.00161--/$0.1015
$15.00$0.95/$1.30409--/$0.5014
$17.50$0.05/$0.1056$0.60/$2.350
$20.00--/$0.75104$3.70/$5.100
$22.50--/$0.750$6.20/$7.700
$25.00--/$0.750$8.70/$10.201
Snapshot: 2026-05-22

Forward Projections & Estimates

NTM Revenue Growth+2.5%
Forward FCF Margin8.8%
Forward EBITDA Margin15.0%
Forward P/FCF61.0x
Forward EV/FCF130.8x
Forward Int. Coverage0.3x
Model Risk Score6/10
Bankruptcy Odds2%
Est. Borrow Rate5.5%
Terminal EV/FCF8.0x
LT Growth2.0%
LT FCF Margin10.0%

Employees

Headcount919
Revenue / Employee$886,175
Gross Profit / Employee$364,523
2022: 1,025 → 2023: 995 → 2024: 919 → 2025: 958 (-2% CAGR)

Institutional Ownership

Headline & net flow

NET BUYING

In Q1 2026 so far (quarter still filing), institutions are net buyers — bought 1.4% of float, sold 0.2%.

Net flow · Q1 2026still filing
+1.2% of float (net)
Bought 1.4% · Sold 0.3%
213 filers reported (last quarter: 204)

Ownership composition

Active
7.0%(+2.9% YoY)
200 filers
hedge / family / endowment
Retail funds
Fidelity, Schwab, 401(k)
Passive
5.0%(+1.1% YoY)
12 filers
Vanguard, iShares, SPDR
Market makers
0.0%(+0.0% YoY)
4 filers
Citadel, Susquehanna
Insiders
0.3%
Form 4 — latest per insider
0%25%50%75%100%2022-062023-032023-122024-092025-062026-03
ActiveRetail fundsPassiveMarket makersRetail direct

Top holders

Fund$ valueCost basisΔ QoQΔ YoYα lifeFund AUM
BlackRock, Inc.Passive$52.7M$11.64−$3.9M+$8.8M-0.2%$5.69T
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS LPPassive$43.3M$11.12+$2.1M+$6.5M-0.4%$480.92B
LAKEWOOD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LP$39.8M$12.25+$1.2M+$33.5M+2.9%$1.56B
RENAISSANCE TECHNOLOGIES LLC$35.8M$11.54−$1.5M−$8.6M+1.2%$63.91B
STATE STREET CORPPassive$33.2M$12.48+$5.6M+$15.1M-0.2%$2.89T
VANGUARD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLCPassive$33.1M$14.05+$33.1M+$33.1M$4.04T
MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.$32.5M$12.20−$791K+$19.0M+1.7%$73.71B
VANGUARD PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT LLCPassive$32.1M$14.05+$32.1M+$32.1M$1.91T
Bank of New York Mellon Corp$26.3M$12.16−$10K+$5.3M-0.2%$543.21B
CRAMER ROSENTHAL MCGLYNN LLC$16.5M$10.55+$41K−$3.0M+0.9%$1.36B
GEODE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLCPassive$16.5M$11.15+$434K+$595K+2.3%$1.61T
BANK OF AMERICA CORP /DE/$14.2M$11.88+$3.0M+$4.9M-0.1%$1.36T
MORGAN STANLEY$11.2M$11.29+$1.2M+$6.9M-0.3%$1.65T
Gator Capital Management, LLC$9.7M$13.41+$3.1M+$9.7M+2.2%$469M
UBS Group AG$9.6M$12.38+$2.6M+$7.2M-0.3%$562.11B
Squarepoint Ops LLC$6.3M$12.96+$3.3M+$5.6M+0.4%$46.27B
Quantinno Capital Management LP$5.7M$12.93+$2.0M+$4.9M-0.4%$59.83B
Beverly Hills Private Wealth, LLC$4.6M$13.21+$493K+$4.6M-0.8%$582M
VANGUARD FIDUCIARY TRUST COPassive$4.5M$14.05+$4.5M+$4.5M$395.83B
TWO SIGMA INVESTMENTS, LP$4.5M$12.81+$895K+$4.2M-0.9%$117.03B
Cost basis is a volume-weighted estimate from accumulation periods within our 13F history; holders who built their position before our window started will show a stale basis. % above the cost basis is the unrealized gain at the current price.

Trading behavior

Smart-money alpha (lifetime, %/qtr)BULLISH
Holders
+0.74%
avg per quarter
Holders (ex-self)
+0.73%
excl. this stock
Buyers (this Q)
+0.38%
124 buyers · $0.13B in
Sellers (this Q)
-0.36%
54 sellers · $0.01B out
alpha coverage: 87% of $ has a lifetime-alpha record
Holder behavior on this stocksource: stock
On big dips (−10%+)
+11.8%
how holders react when this stock falls
On quiet Qs
+1.3%
−10% to +10% baseline
On rallies (+10%+)
+4.2%
how they react when this stock rises
Holders' portfolio flow this Q
+4.4%
inflows — adds are organic
Sellers' portfolio flow this Q
-6.9%
Sellers shed AUM broadly — partly forced.
▸ Compare to holder-profile behavior (across all their stocks)
Holder dip (any stock)
-3.2%
Holder mid (any stock)
-4.8%
Holder rally (any stock)
-6.8%

Top Holders Over Time

5-year share-count history (top 10 holders by peak, incl. exited) + price

03.2M6.3M9.5M12.7M$9.55$11$12$13$142021-062022-062023-062024-062025-062026-03
hover the chart for per-quarter detailprice (right axis)
RENAISSANCE TECHNOLOGIES LLC2.5MLAKEWOOD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LP2.8MMIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.2.3MEmpyrean Capital Partners, LPBank of New York Mellon Corp1.9MCRAMER ROSENTHAL MCGLYNN LLC1.2MMILLENNIUM MANAGEMENT LLC126KBANK OF AMERICA CORP /DE/1.0MMirae Asset Global Investments Co., Ltd.MORGAN STANLEY797K

Analyst Coverage

Analyst Coverage
Price Targets
Last Year (1 analysts)$15.00-570.0%
Current Price$15.91
Analyst Ratings
1
3
Buy: 1Hold: 3Consensus: Hold
Consensus Estimates
QuarterRevenueEBITDANet IncEPSEPS Range# Analysts
2025 Q281M18M22M$0.08$0.08 – $0.081
2025 Q384M18M22M$0.08$0.08 – $0.081
2025 Q486M19M25M$0.09$0.09 – $0.091
2026 Q185M18M22M$0.08$0.08 – $0.081
2026 Q287M19M22M$0.08$0.08 – $0.081
2026 Q389M19M25M$0.09$0.09 – $0.091
2026 Q490M20M25M$0.09$0.09 – $0.091
2027 Q192M20M27M$0.10$0.09 – $0.101
2027 Q293M20M27M$0.10$0.09 – $0.101
2027 Q394M20M27M$0.10$0.09 – $0.101

Corporate

Executive Compensation (2012-2014)

Direct Pay$20.8M
Incentive & Other$22.5M
Total Compensation$43.3M
% of Revenue1.9%

Insider Trading (last 12mo)

Open-market only (Form 4 P-Purchase + S-Sale). Excludes grants, option exercises, tax withholding, gifts.
Officers & directors
Buys ($, 12mo)
$1.00M
5 txns · 2 insiders · 72,114 sh
Sells ($, 12mo)
$2.80M
18 txns · 8 insiders · 194,056 sh
Recent transactions
DateSideInsiderTitleSharesPriceDollarsOwned $
2026-05-18SELLZbanek Cathy Wofficer: Chief Synergy Officer10,000$15.26$153K$932K
2026-05-14BUYWeir Daniel Fdirector7,000$15.02$105K$645K
2026-05-12BUYWeir Daniel Fdirector21,000$14.91$313K$761K
2026-05-11SELLWEIL MEREDITH Sdirector, officer: Chief Financial Officer13,756$14.91$205K$574K
2026-05-06SELLRubino Andrew Jofficer: Chief Operating Officer6,600$15.18$100K$323K
2026-03-12BUYAsher Anthony Jdirector5,000$13.37$67K$659K
2026-02-20SELLStefanski Gavin Bofficer: Chief Experience Officer7,000$14.97$105K$386K
2026-02-17SELLStefanski Marc Adirector, officer: Chairman, President and CEO36,844$15.12$557K$1.09M
2026-02-13SELLStefanski Marc Adirector, officer: Chairman, President and CEO1,000$15.00$15K$1.63M
2026-02-12SELLStefanski Marc Adirector, officer: Chairman, President and CEO7,149$15.03$107K$1.65M
2026-02-11SELLWEIL MEREDITH Sdirector, officer: Chief Financial Officer15,000$14.95$224K$781K
2026-02-11SELLStefanski Marc Adirector, officer: Chairman, President and CEO7$15.00$105$1.65M
2026-02-03SELLAnderson Barbara J.director11,000$14.21$156K$88K
2025-12-15BUYAsher Anthony Jdirector1,439$13.89$20K$543K
2025-12-12SELLWilliams Ashley Hdirector7,600$13.66$104K$226K
2025-12-03SELLZbanek Cathy Wofficer: Chief Synergy Officer20,000$14.13$283K$752K
2025-11-24SELLRubino Andrew Jofficer: Chief Operating Officer5,000$14.23$71K$272K
2025-11-12SELLWEIL MEREDITH Sdirector, officer: Chief Financial Officer15,000$13.85$208K$672K
2025-09-11SELLWeir Daniel Fdirector3,900$13.37$52K$200K
2025-09-02SELLWEIL MEREDITH Sdirector, officer: Chief Financial Officer15,000$13.70$206K$870K

Order Flow (FINRA, ~3w lag)

18.7%retail+2.0pp
20.4%dark+3.0pp
week of 2026-04-27
10%20%30%40%24-1125-0225-0525-0825-1126-0226-04retail (non-ATS)dark (ATS)
Off-exchange volume from FINRA. Retail = non-ATS (wholesaler PFOF + broker internalization). Dark = ATS (dark-pool crossing networks, institutional). Lit-exchange = remainder.

Revenue Breakdown

Revenue Segments

By Product (2026-Q2)
Banking$2.5M+13%

Filing Risk Analysis

Filing Risk Scores

TFS Financial Corporation: Temporal Anomalies and Information Vacuum

Overall Risk
4/10
Fraud
3/10
Dilution
2/10
Insolvency
2/10
Earnings Overstated
2/10
Hidden Liabilities
2/10
Legal
3/10
Audit Warnings
1/10
Hidden Upside
1/10
Contextually Acceptable
5/10

Counter-Thesis

Counter-Thesis & Recent News

📰 Recent News

TFS Financial (TFSL) recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2825 per share, maintaining an attractive ~8% yield. In its Q1 2026 report (period ended Dec 31, 2025), the company reported a 10.83% year-over-year increase in Net Interest Income to $75.7 million. CEO Marc Stefanski highlighted that the bank is successfully adapting to recent Fed rate cuts, with asset quality remaining 'pristine' and Tier 1 capital ratios at a strong 10.75%. (Sources: Business Wire, Feb 2026; Investing.com, Feb 2026).

🐻 Bear Case

The core bear thesis relies on a high P/E ratio (approx. 44x) which appears significantly overvalued compared to the industry average of ~11.5x. Bears argue that stagnant EPS growth (2% over five years) and a low Net Interest Margin (NIM) of ~1.79% indicate a lack of profitability in the loan book. Furthermore, a recent earnings miss in Jan 2026 ($0.08 vs $0.09 expected) suggests the bank struggles to meet Wall Street's already conservative growth expectations. (Sources: Simply Wall St, March 2026; Finviz, March 2026).

🚩 Red Flags

A notable red flag is recent insider activity; the Chairman sold approximately $572k worth of stock in February 2026, following another $411k sale in December 2025. Additionally, the bank’s high reliance on Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) makes it uniquely sensitive to interest rate volatility, as seen in the 2.07% NII decrease between Q4 2025 and Q1 2026 following rate cuts. (Sources: Simply Wall St, Feb 2026; Business Wire, Jan 2026).

⚔️ Competitive Threats

TFSL faces intense competition for savings customers, which exerts pressure on its cost of funds and further narrows margins. Unlike larger commercial peers, TFSL's specialized focus on retail mortgage lending and the Cleveland/Florida markets limits its ability to diversify revenue, leaving it vulnerable to regional housing market downturns or aggressive rate pricing from fintech competitors. (Source: MarketBeat, March 2026; CEO Quarterly Remarks, Jan 2026).

💬 Customer Sentiment

Customer sentiment remains a major hidden strength; USA TODAY named Third Federal (TFSL's subsidiary) one of the top 500 financial services companies in the U.S. for customer service in 2026, citing reliability and professional competence. Moreover, the 81% ownership by a Mutual Holding Company (MHC) creates a stable 'member' environment where depositors frequently vote in favor of dividend waivers, effectively subsidizing the high yield for minority shareholders. (Source: USA TODAY/Business Wire, Feb 2026).