Richard Sloan from the University of Michigan was first to document what is referred to as the "accrual anomaly". His 1996 paper found that shares of companies with small or negative accruals vastly outperform (+10%) those of companies with large ones.
Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio for the quarter that ended in Mar. 2026 was 1.78%.
As of Mar. 2026, Washington Federal has a Sloan Ratio of 1.78%, indicating the company is in the safe zone and there is no funny business with accruals.
Washington Federal (NAS:WFSLW) Sloan Ratio % Explanation
A former University of Michigan researcher, Richard Sloan's 1996 paper found that shares of companies with small or negative accruals vastly outperform (+10%) those of companies with large ones. In fact, for the 40-year period between 1962 and 2001, buying the lowest accrual companies and shorting the highest accrual companies resulted in an average annual compounded return of 18%, more than double the S&P 500's 7.4% annual return over the same period.
If the Sloan Ratio is between -10% and 10%, the company is in the safe zone and there is no funny business with accruals.
If the Sloan Ratio is less than between -25% and -10% on the negative side, and between 10% and 25% on the positive side, this is a warning stage of accrual build up.
If the Sloan Ratio is less than -25% or greater than 25%, and this ratio is consistent over several quarters or even years, be careful. Earnings are highly likely to be made up of accruals.
As of Mar. 2026, Washington Federal has a Sloan Ratio of 1.78%, indicating the company is in the safe zone and there is no funny business with accruals.
Washington Federal Sloan Ratio % Related Terms
Washington Federal Sloan Ratio % Historical Data
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The historical data trend for Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
WFSLW vs FRME, CUBI, TRMK: Sloan Ratio % Comparison
For the Banks - Regional subindustry, Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio %, along with its competitors' market caps and Sloan Ratio % data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Washington Federal Sloan Ratio % vs Banks Industry
For the Banks industry and Financial Services sector, Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % falls into.
Earnings contain a lot of non cash earnings which is called accruals. The Sloan ratio is a way to identify firms with low non-cash or accrual-derived earnings relative to their cash flow.
Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio for the fiscal year that ended in Sep. 2025 is calculated as
Washington Federal's Net Income for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was 61.952 (Jun. 2025 ) + 60.597 (Sep. 2025 ) + 64.196 (Dec. 2025 ) + 65.548 (Mar. 2026 ) = $252.29 Mil.
Washington Federal's Cash Flow from Operations for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was 58.007 (Jun. 2025 ) + 57.38 (Sep. 2025 ) + 60.48 (Dec. 2025 ) + 79.378 (Mar. 2026 ) = $255.25 Mil.
Washington Federal's Cash Flow from Investing for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was 468.891 (Jun. 2025 ) + -58.759 (Sep. 2025 ) + -511.688 (Dec. 2025 ) + -391.051 (Mar. 2026 ) = $-492.61 Mil.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
Washington Federal (WFSLW) has a Sloan Ratio % of 1.78% as of Mar. 2026. Sloan ratio measures earnings quality based on the amount of accruals. View historical data on Washington Federal and its competitors.
Is Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % too high?
Washington Federal's current Sloan Ratio % is 1.78%. Overall, Washington Federal has a GF Score™ of 63/100, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % compare to FRME and CUBI?
Washington Federal's Sloan Ratio % of 1.78% can be compared against companies in the Banks industry. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Sloan Ratio % for a Banks company?
A good Sloan Ratio % depends on the Banks industry context. However, Sloan Ratio % should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Sloan Ratio % mean?
A high Sloan Ratio % can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Sloan ratio measures earnings quality based on the amount of accruals. View historical data on Washington Federal and its competitors. Washington Federal's current Sloan Ratio % is 1.78%. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Washington Federal stock overvalued right now?
Washington Federal (WFSLW) has a current Sloan Ratio % of 1.78%. The current Sloan Ratio % is 1.78%. Washington Federal's overall GF Score™ is 63/100 with 9 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Sloan Ratio % calculated?
Sloan Ratio % is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Washington Federal (WFSLW), the current Sloan Ratio % is 1.78% as of Mar. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
WaFd Inc is engaged in providing lending, depository, insurance, and other banking services to consumers, mid-sized to large businesses, and owners and developers of commercial real estate. Through the WaFd Bank, it is involved in accepting deposits from the general public and investing these funds in loans of various types, including first-lien mortgages on single-family dwellings, construction loans, land acquisition and development loans among others. The Bank also invests in certain United States government and agency obligations along with other investments and also performs insurance brokerage activities. Geographically, it operates in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, California and Texas.
63GF Score
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