Business Education
Understanding Banking Ratios

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How are Banking Ratios Compiled ? > USBR Bank Ratio Database

Financial institutions such as banks, financial service companies, insurance companies, securities firms and credit unions have very different ways of reporting financial information. This guide gives you the most pertinent information to analyze a financial service company's financial statements.

Analyzing Banking Data
Return on Assets

USBR calculates Return on Assets (ROA) by dividing net operating income by total assets.

Return on Average Assets = ( Net Operating Income/ Total Assets )

Return on Equity

Return on Equity = ( Net Income/Stockholder Equity )

Return on Equity is determined by dividing net income (minus preferred dividends) by average common stockholders equity to get the return on equity.

Rate Paid on Funds

The Rate Paid on Funds is determined by dividing total interest expense by total earning assets. The formula is as follows:

Rate Paid on Funds = Total Interest Expense / Total Earning Assets

This indicates what percentage or rate of interest is paid from assets.

Gross Yield on Earning Assets (GYEA)

The gross yield on average earning assets measures the total average return on the banks earning assets. The gross yield on earning assets is computed as follows:

GYEA = Total Interest Income / Total Average Earning assets

Essentially, the gross yield on earning asset ratio is really just the rate paid on funds (RPF) plus the net interest margin which equals the GYEA.

Rate Paid on Funds + Net Interest Margin = Gross Yield on Earning Assets

Risk Ratios
Net Interest Margin

Net Interest Margin

Net interest margin is computed by dividing net interest income by total earning assets.

Net Interest Margin = Net Interest income/ Average Earning Assets

Provision for Loan Losses

This important figure is a reserve account to cover unexpected defaults on loans by borrowers. These are generally referred to as nonperforming loans.

Reserve as a percentage of loans: ( Reserve/ Total loans )

Chargeoffs as percentage of loans: (Charge-offs/ Total Loans )

The higher the nonperforming loan and charge-off percentages, the higher the provision for loan losses should probably be. Consequently, this would reduce net income and earnings per share.

Long Term Debt to Total Liabilites and Equity

The higher this figure, the more difficult it would be for a bank to borrow more funds.This figure is determined as follows:

Long Term Debt to Total Liabilities and Equity = ( Long Term Debt / Total Liabilities plus Equity )

Loans-to-Assets

The loans to assets ratio measures the total loans outstanding as a percentage of total assets. The higher this ratio indicates a bank is loaned up and its liquidity is low. The higher the ratio, the more risky a bank may be to higher defaults.

This figure is determined as follows:

Loans to Assets = ( Loans / Total Assets )

Capital Ratio
Leverage Ratio

The Leverage Ratio measures the banks equity to total average assets which is a common measure used to analyze capital adequancy of a bank. This figure is determined as follows:

Leverage Ratio = ( Stockholders Equity / Average Total Assets )

Equity-to-Loans

Equity to Loans reflects the degree of equity coverage to outstanding loans. This figure is determined as follows:

Equity to Loans = ( Average Common Equity / Average Total Assets )

Tier 1 Capital

Tier I

Banks must maintain a ratio which is within the guidelines set by the FDIC guidelines. This figure is determined as follows:

Tier 1 Capital = ( Stockholder Equity/ Risk-Adjusted Assets )

Total Capital
Total Capital includes Tier I and the reserve for loan losses ( up to 1.25 % of Risk Adjusted Capital) plus subordinated notes (to 50 percent of Tier I capital). This figure is also set by FDIC guidelines.