First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) reported second-quarter 2026 earnings per share of $1.84, including a net $0.14-per-share benefit from two one-time items, as loan growth, margin expansion and fee income supported record pre-tax, pre-provision earnings.
CEO Dave Seiler said pre-tax, pre-provision earnings reached a record $19.8 million in the quarter and increased 15% in the first half of 2026
Excluding the one-time items, earnings per share rose 18% from the first quarter and 26% from the prior-year period, he said. The company’s second-quarter results included an $0.18-per-share benefit from releasing the remaining $1.5 million deferred tax valuation allowance related to changes in Wisconsin tax law. That benefit was partly offset by $405,000 of severance costs, equivalent to $0.04 per share, related to the company’s decision to exit national, out-of-footprint SBA 7(a) lending operations.
SBA Exit Intended to Improve Profitability First Business ended its national SBA 7(a) lending activities at the end of May, though it will retain its SBA preferred lender status and continue to offer 7(a) and 504 loans to clients in its bank markets as needed. Seiler said the company had invested for roughly a decade in expanding SBA talent and capabilities nationally but did not achieve the desired loan volume and profitability. He said the company concluded that industry standards for SBA underwriting and compliance did not align with First Business’ credit-quality standards. “We determined that building the national SBA volume at scale would require a level of underwriting flexibility that was inconsistent with our standards for credit quality,” Seiler said.