Bank & Insurer
Screener.
How good is the bank or insurer, measured the way it is measured? Every other screener on this site leaves banks and insurers out, because current ratios and free cash flow mean nothing for them. This one uses return on tangible equity, efficiency, capital, credit losses and loss ratios, straight from each company's own 10-K.
Measuring the stocks…
The measures, exactly as computed
| Group | Measure | How it is worked out |
|---|---|---|
| Banks | Return on tangible common equity | net income over average equity less preferred stock, goodwill and intangibles |
| Banks | Efficiency ratio | noninterest expense over net interest income plus noninterest income; lower is better |
| Banks | Tangible capital | tangible common equity over total assets less goodwill and intangibles |
| Banks | Margin on assets | net interest income over average total assets (a plain stand-in for net interest margin) |
| Banks | Credit | allowance for credit losses over loans; net charge-offs over average loans |
| Insurers | Return on equity excluding AOCI | net income over average equity without accumulated other comprehensive income |
| Insurers | Loss ratio | claims incurred over net premiums earned; property and casualty writers only |
| Insurers | Cost ratio | total benefits, losses and expenses over total revenues |
| Insurers | Premium growth | net premiums earned against the year before |
| Insurers | Balance sheet | total assets over equity; net investment income over average invested assets |
- The tint on a number is a rule of thumb, not a verdict: green is a strong reading, amber a middling one, red a weak one. The bars are on the method page, and the number is always written beside the colour.
- Price to tangible book divides today's market value by tangible common equity from the latest 10-K, so it moves with the share price. Insurers use book value without AOCI.
- A line the filing does not tag as a single total is shown as a dash, never estimated.
- Every number comes from the SEC's structured version of the 10-K, so you can check it against the filing. For the other quality screens see the Piotroski F-Score and the Earnings Quality Screener; plain-English definitions are in the glossary.
What this can't do
- Annual numbers only. Each row uses the latest 10-K, so it can be up to a year old. The fiscal year is shown beside every stock. Banks report regulatory capital (CET1) and net interest margin quarterly; this page uses what the annual filing tags.
- It cannot see the loan book. A low allowance can mean good loans or too little caution, and the filing's totals do not tell you which. Read the credit lines beside the capital line.
- Insurers are not alike. A property and casualty writer, a life insurer and a mixed group are tagged differently, so the loss ratio is shown only where it is comparable and the cost ratio is not the industry's combined ratio.
- Who is in it is a choice. It covers the banks and deposit-taking lenders and the property, casualty and life insurers in this site's universe. Brokers, asset managers, payment networks and REITs are not in it.
On Nov 4, 2026, BNY (BK) earns the highest return on tangible common equity of the 18 banks this site measures, at 29.7%, with an efficiency ratio of 65%. Among the 17 insurers, Progressive (PGR) leads on return on equity without AOCI, at 39.5%.
How Good Is
The Balance Sheet?
Six measures sit side by side on every row. A tint marks a strong, middling or weak reading by this site's rules of thumb; the number is always shown. Click any row for the full stock card.
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Which bank stocks earn the highest return on tangible equity?
On Nov 4, 2026, BNY (BK) earns the highest return on tangible common equity of the 18 banks this site measures, at 29.7%, with an efficiency ratio of 65%. Among the 17 insurers, Progressive (PGR) leads on return on equity without AOCI, at 39.5%. Both come from each company's latest 10-K, and a strong return says nothing about the price paid for it.
| Stock | Return on tangible equity | Efficiency ratio | Tangible capital | Price to tangible book | Fiscal year to |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BKBNY | 29.7% | 65% | 4.4% | 4.73x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| SYFSynchrony Financial | 25.1% | 27% | 12.0% | 1.69x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| JPMJPMorgan Chase & Co | 20.3% | 52% | 6.6% | 3.11x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| USBUS Bancorp | 20.3% | 59% | 6.0% | 2.30x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| FITBFifth Third Bancorp | 18.4% | 57% | 7.1% | 3.27x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| RFRegions Financial Corp | 17.2% | 57% | 8.6% | 1.86x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| HBANHuntington Bancshares Inc | 15.9% | 61% | 7.1% | 2.03x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| MTBM&T Bank Corp | 15.8% | 57% | 8.7% | 1.78x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| STTState Street Corp | 15.8% | 73% | 5.5% | 2.34x | Dec 31, 2025 |
| WFCWells Fargo & Co | 15.5% | 66% | 6.6% | 1.82x | Dec 31, 2025 |
The screener above lists every bank and insurer with six measures each and the peer medians. Return on tangible equity, the efficiency ratio and tangible book value are defined in the glossary.
Computed from each company's own 10-K filings on SEC EDGAR; market values from this site's screener data. Educational content only, not investment advice.
Frequently asked questions
How do you analyze a bank stock?
Look at four things: return on tangible common equity (profit on the owners' real capital), the efficiency ratio (cost per $1 of revenue), tangible capital (the cushion against loan losses) and the price paid against tangible book value. Credit quality, shown by the allowance and net charge-offs, tells you whether the profit is being borrowed from the future.
What is a good efficiency ratio for a bank?
Lower is better, because it is the cost of earning each $1 of revenue. This page tints an efficiency ratio below 55% green and above 65% red. Custody banks and wealth managers run higher ratios because fees, not loans, are their business, so compare a bank with similar banks.
How do you analyze an insurance stock?
Check the return on equity excluding accumulated other comprehensive income, the loss ratio for property and casualty writers, the cost ratio, premium growth and how much premium sits on each dollar of equity. A high return that comes from a loose loss ratio in a soft market is the pattern to watch.
Why are banks and insurers left out of the other screeners?
Current ratios, gross margin, free cash flow and asset turnover do not describe a business whose balance sheet is its product. Deposits and policy reserves are not working capital. This screener uses the measures that do fit them.
Why does a bank show a dash for charge-offs or loans?
Some banks do not tag that line as a single total in their 10-K, so it cannot be read without guessing. A figure the filing does not answer is left blank rather than estimated.
How do you compare bank and insurance stocks? About this screener
This bank and insurer screener measures return on tangible equity, efficiency, tangible capital, credit losses, loss ratios and premium growth on each company's own 10-K, then sets the price against tangible book value or book value. The measures are the ones analysts use for lenders and underwriters, because the usual industrial ratios do not fit them. It describes the filings; it is not a verdict. For why a bank's free cash flow misleads, read why bank free cash flow yields mislead, and for the price side see the price-to-book guide. The formulas are on the method page and in the formulas and methods section.
Educational content only, not investment advice. These are screens built from public filings, not verdicts: a strong reading does not make a stock safe, and a weak one does not make it a bad investment. Always read the company's own 10-K before acting on anything shown here. See Editorial Standards and Disclosures for more.