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mttssn research · Nordic Deep Dive
Sparebank 1 Nord-Norge (NONG.OL)
Financials · Northern-Norway savings bank (equity certificates) · LTM Q1 2026
Analysis date: 2026-06-15
Price at analysis: NOK 147.22
Method: mttssn_streamlined_v1
Conviction: MEDIUM
HOLD
Conviction: MEDIUM
The leading savings bank of Northern Norway — a dominant regional franchise with fortress capital (CET1 16.5%, total 21.0%), near-zero loan losses (~0.07%) and a high ROE (~17.7% LTM on the owners' slice). The listed instrument is an equity certificate (46.36% ownership fraction). At 1.78x book / 9.9x earnings it sits ~at a Gordon fair value on a normalized 15% ROE (fair ~NOK 142 vs ~147 price), with a ~5.8% dividend yield the main return. Quality, fairly valued. HOLD; base NOK 145.
Return on Equity
18.0%
Cost of equity ~10.0%
Price / Book
0.82×
1.78× book (equity-certificate basis)
Fair P/B (Gordon)
2.14×
(ROE−g)/(COE−g); g 3%
Price / Target
NOK 147 → NOK 145
-2% base; HOLD
Price / Earnings
4.6×
~9.9× earnings
P / TBV
0.84×
Price / tangible book
Economic Profit
+NOK 1,403M
Residual income positive; ROE ~17.7% (norm 15%) vs 10% COE
Equity (book)
NOK 17.9B
EC ownership fraction 46.36%; CET1 16.5%, total 21.0%
Thesis

SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge is the leading bank of Northern Norway — retail and corporate banking across a vast, structurally under-banked region, with the scale and product reach of the SpareBank 1 alliance. The listed security is an equity certificate ('egenkapitalbevis') representing the 46.36% owners' fraction of the bank's capital; ROE, EPS and book value are computed on that owners' slice and reconcile to the bank's reported per-certificate figures. Returns are high and clean: ROE ~17.7% LTM (18.1% FY2025), near-zero loan losses (~0.07%), CET1 16.5% (total capital 21.0%).

On bank primitives (ROE/P-B, not ROIC/EV) it trades at 1.78x book, 1.80x tangible and 9.9x earnings, with a ~5.8% dividend yield (55.6% payout). That ~17.7% ROE is a healthy spread over a ~10% cost of equity (positive residual income), but the reported figure is rate-inflated and NIM is already compressing (2.62% vs 2.91%); on a normalized through-cycle 15% ROE the Gordon fair value is ~NOK 142 — roughly the ~147 price. A high-quality regional bank, fairly valued, owned for the dividend and the capital strength rather than a re-rating.

Valuation · residual income (equity frame) & scenarios

Gordon fair P/B = (ROE-g)/(COE-g) with COE 10%, g 3%: a normalized 15% ROE gives a fair value ~NOK 142 (the reported 17.7% ROE implies higher). Current 1.78x book, 9.9x earnings, ~5.8% yield.

Base NOK 145 (~fair on normalized ROE; the dividend is the return); bull NOK 170 if rates stay higher-for-longer and ROE holds ~17%+; bear NOK 120 if NIM compresses further and the multiple de-rates toward ~1.4x book.

Market-implied ROE
8.8%
sustainable ROE the price already demands — vs 18.0% observed
Current → Fair P/B
0.82× → 2.14×
at a sustained 18.0% ROE, Ke 10.0%, g 3%
Excess-return premium
NOK 203 / sh
value above NOK 178.45 book from the +8.0pp ROE−Ke spread

The operating reverse-DCF (NOPAT / invested capital / WACC) does not apply to a balance-sheet business — leverage is the raw material and "net debt" is not meaningful. The equity is valued on residual income: book equity plus the present value of returns above the cost of equity, discounted at Ke; the single-stage lens is the Gordon fair price-to-book, (ROE−g)/(Ke−g). The market prices in a sustainable ROE of 8.8% vs 18.0% currently earned; at a sustained 18.0% ROE the warranted P/B is 2.14× (NOK 382/sh, +159%).

Scenario24m targetImpl. ROEUpsideProb.Driver
BullNOK 17010%+15%30%Rates stay higher-for-longer; ROE holds ~17%+
BaseNOK 1459%-2%45%~Fair on normalized ROE; dividend is the return
BearNOK 1208%-18%25%NIM compresses; multiple de-rates toward ~1.4x book
Prob-weightedNOK 146-1%100%Scenario-weighted expected value

Sensitivity — fair value / share at Ke × ROE

Ke \ ROE10%14%18%22%26%30%34%
8.50%2273574876167468761006
9.25%200314428542657771885
10.00% (base)178280382484586688790
10.75%161253345437530622714
11.50%147231315399483567651

Green = fair value above the current price of NOK 147.22. For a financial the surface is dominated by cost of equity and sustainable ROE — not unit growth.

Method & data. ROE 18.0% and book equity are observed (net income / total equity). Cost of equity 10.0% and terminal g 3% are assumptions, shown explicitly and overridable.

⤓ Download the full model (.xlsx) — formula-driven sheets; flex the blue input cells and the model cascades in Excel.

Key drivers

1. Regional dominance

Leading Northern-Norway franchise + alliance scale = stable, high-return banking.

2. Fortress capital + low losses

CET1 16.5%, near-zero loan losses — defensive quality.

3. High dividend

~5.8% yield at 55.6% payout off surplus capital.

4. Rate environment

Higher-for-longer rates support NII and the ~17% ROE.

Key risks
Conclusion

SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge is a high-quality, fortress-capitalised regional bank (~17.7% ROE, CET1 16.5%, near-zero losses) trading ~at a normalized-ROE Gordon fair value with a ~5.8% yield. HOLD; base NOK 145.

Own it for the capital strength and dividend, not a re-rating; the swing factor is the NIM/rate path.

Footnote evidence & sources

Every adjustment traces to the cited note/page in the source filing — click to open it there. Source reports archived locally.

Adjustment / figureValueSourceWhy mttssn treats it this way
Net interest income (FY2025, Group)4,030Annual report income statement p.138Core bank revenue line. FY2025 Group NII 4,030 (4,028 in 2024). LTM NII 3,982 = Q1'26 938 + FY 4,030 - Q1'25 986.
Net interest income (Q1 2026)938Group financial highlights p.3Q1 2026 NII 938 (986 in Q1 2025), down on margin compression; net interest margin 2.62% of average assets vs 2.91%. Used in LTM roll.
Total net income (Q1 2026 / FY2025)6,460Group financial highlights p.3 (FY column) + AR p.138FY2025 total income 6,460; Q1'26 1,466; Q1'25 1,557. LTM total income = 1,466 + 6,460 - 1,557 = 6,369.
Result before tax (FY2025, Group)4,279Annual report income statement p.138Pre-tax profit FY2025 4,279 (4,512 in 2024). Bank 'operating profit' proxy. LTM = 924 + 4,279 - 1,008 = 4,195.
Result for the year (FY2025, Group incl NCI)3,457Annual report income statement p.138Group net profit 3,457 (controlling owner 3,421 + NCI 36). LTM group result = 719 + 3,457 - 811 = 3,365.
Owners' result ex-hybrid (FY2025) / Result per EC15.29Note 41 Result per EC p.191Owners' adjusted result 3,311 (= 3,457 - NCI 36 - hybrid interest 110); EC holders' share at 46.36% = 1,535; / 100.398m EC = result per EC NOK 15.29. Confirms owner-basis methodology and EC ratio.
EC ownership fraction (egenkapitalbevisbrok / EC ratio)0.464Note 41 Equity and EC ratio p.191Equity-certificate holders' percentage of equity 46.36% (community/society 53.64%). The single most important structural figure — defines what the listed NONG certificate represents. Unchanged for 10+ years.
EC owners' share of equity (31 Dec 2025 / 31 Mar 2026)8,307Q1 2026 Note 20 Equity p.43EC owner's share of equity 8,307 at 31 Mar 2026 (8,842 at 31 Dec 2025). / 100.398m EC = book value per EC NOK 82.74 (reported 82.73). Basis for P/B.
Total equity / hybrid / NCI (31 Mar 2026)19,782Q1 2026 Balance sheet p.17Total equity 19,782 = EC owners' 8,307 + society 9,609 + hybrid 1,575 + NCI 291. Owners' common equity (ex-hybrid, ex-NCI) = 17,916, the invested-capital base. Down from 20,839 (Dec) on the 1,840m dividend paid in Q1.
Number of equity certificates issued100,398,016Note 41 EC and ownership structure p.190100,398,016 certificates, nominal NOK 18, EC capital NOK 1,807,164,288. Unchanged since 2013. Used for per-EC figures and listed market cap.
Return on equity (FY2025 / Q1 2026)0.181Group financial highlights p.3Reported RoE FY2025 18.1%, Q1 2026 14.9%, Q1 2025 17.4% (hybrid treated as liability). Our LTM owners' ROE 17.7%; normalized through-cycle 15% used for Gordon. Recent level rate-inflated.
Common Equity Tier 1 ratio (CET1)0.165Group financial highlights p.3 / Note 21 p.44Regulatory capital strength. CET1 16.5% Q1 2026 (16.2% FY2025), comfortably above requirement and internal target; Tier 1 18.5%, total capital 21.0%. CET1 capital 14,664m, RWA 88,913m (under CRR3 from 1 Apr 2025).
Cost/income ratio0.353Group financial highlights p.3C/I 35.3% Q1 2026 (32.5% FY2025). Bank has set a long-term target of <=35% from 2026; a simplification/cost project targets NOK 40-50m annual savings from 2027.
Loan losses (Q1 2026 / FY2025) and loss ratio24Losses, p.3 highlights + p.11 narrativeNet loan losses NOK 24m Q1 2026 (57m Q1 2025), 81m FY2025 — historically low. Loss ratio ~0.07% of gross loans FY2025; entirely from Corporate Market (construction/contracting). Structural low-risk lending culture.
Equity per EC / Result per EC / P-E / P-B (Q1 2026)82.73NONG Key figures p.4Bank's own per-EC key figures at 31 Mar 2026: Equity per EC NOK 82.73, Result per EC 3.15 (quarter), P/E 12.19, P/B 1.88 (at the report's NONG price 155.70). Confirms our 82.74 BVPS and per-EC method; live multiples recomputed at NOK 147.22.
Dividend per EC FY20258.5Proposed profit allocation p.17 / Note 42 p.192Cash dividend NOK 8.50 per EC (total 853m to EC holders), payout 55.6% of Group profit; ex-date 27 Mar 2026. Yield 5.77% on NOK 147.22. High, stable savings-bank distribution.
Quoted/market price NONG (history)152Key figures ECC NONG p.9Bank's own NONG closing price 151.90 (31 Dec 2025), 123.48 (2024), with P/B 1.7x and P/E 9.9x on FY2025 figures. Live verified price NOK 147.22 (8 Jun 2026) used for current multiples.
Hybrid Tier 1 capital (classified as equity)1,575Note 20 Hybrid capital p.43Six perpetual Tier 1 instruments NOK 1,575m (1,450m FY2025), avg coupon 7.20%, classified as IFRS equity but treated as a liability for owner key figures (interest 27m Q1 charged to equity). Excluded from owners' equity base.
Analysis history

How the mttssn view has evolved — each prior dated note is preserved.

Quality · Buffett tenets11 / 15
Understandable business
SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge — leading savings bank of Northern Norway (retail + corporate); listed equity certificates; legible, deposit-funded.
Durable moat
Strong regional: dominant Northern-Norway franchise + SpareBank 1 alliance scale, but mortgage banking is competitive.
Able & honest management
Conservative, well-capitalised, steady high payout; the equity-certificate structure is shareholder-aligned.
Financial strength
Fortress: CET1 16.5% (total 21.0%), near-zero loan losses (~0.07%), ROE ~17.7% — high quality.
Margin of safety
Limited: at 1.78x book it sits ~at a Gordon fair value on a normalized 15% ROE (fair ~NOK 142) — fairly valued, ~5.8% yield.