Table of Contents
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-Q
(Mark One)
☒ Quarterly Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2024
OR
☐ Transition Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the transition period from _______ to _______
Commission File Number 001-39068
METROCITY BANKSHARES, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Georgia
47-2528408
(State or other jurisdiction ofincorporation)
(I.R.S. EmployerIdentification No.)
5114 Buford HighwayDoraville, Georgia
30340
(Address of principal executive offices)
(Zip Code)
(770) 455-4989
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class
Trading Symbol(s)
Name of each Exchange on which registered
Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share
MCBS
Nasdaq Global Select Market
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer
☐
Accelerated filer
☒
Non-accelerated filer
Smaller reporting company
Emerging growth company
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒
As of May 1, 2024, the registrant had 25,205,506 shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, issued and outstanding.
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
March 31, 2024
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Part I.
Financial Information
Item l.
Financial Statements:
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2024 (unaudited) and December 31, 2023
3
Consolidated Statements of Income (unaudited) for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 and 2023
4
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (unaudited) for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 and 2023
5
Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity (unaudited) for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 and 2023
6
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (unaudited) for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 and 2023
7
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (unaudited)
9
Item 2.
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
33
Item 3.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
53
Item 4.
Controls and Procedures
54
Part II.
Other Information
Item 1.
Legal Proceedings
55
Item 1A.
Risk Factors
Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities, Use of Proceeds, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Defaults Upon Senior Securities
Mine Safety Disclosures
Item 5.
56
Item 6.
Exhibits
Signatures
57
2
PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(Dollars in thousands, except per share data)
March 31,
December 31,
2024
2023
(Unaudited)
Assets:
Cash and due from banks
$
254,331
142,152
Federal funds sold
4,505
2,653
Cash and cash equivalents
258,836
144,805
Equity securities
10,288
10,335
Securities available for sale
18,057
18,493
Loans held for sale
72,610
22,267
Loans, less allowance for credit losses of $17,982 and $18,112, respectively
3,097,889
3,123,993
Accrued interest receivable
15,686
15,125
Federal Home Loan Bank stock
19,063
17,846
Premises and equipment, net
18,081
18,132
Operating lease right-of-use asset
8,030
8,472
Foreclosed real estate, net
1,452
1,466
SBA and USDA servicing asset
7,611
7,251
Mortgage servicing asset, net
937
1,273
Bank owned life insurance
71,492
70,957
Interest rate derivatives
38,682
31,781
Other assets
8,505
10,627
Total assets
3,647,219
3,502,823
Liabilities:
Deposits:
Non-interest-bearing demand
546,760
512,045
Interest-bearing
2,267,098
2,218,891
Total deposits
2,813,858
2,730,936
Federal Home Loan Bank advances
350,000
325,000
Operating lease liability
8,189
8,651
Accrued interest payable
3,059
4,133
Other liabilities
75,509
52,586
Total liabilities
3,250,615
3,121,306
Shareholders' Equity:
Preferred stock, $0.01 par value, 10,000,000 shares authorized, no shares issued or outstanding
—
Common stock, $0.01 par value, 40,000,000 shares authorized, 25,205,506 shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023
252
Additional paid-in capital
46,105
45,699
Retained earnings
324,900
315,356
Accumulated other comprehensive income
25,347
20,210
Total shareholders' equity
396,604
381,517
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity
See accompanying notes to unaudited consolidated financial statements.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Unaudited)
Three Months Ended
Interest and dividend income:
Loans, including fees
50,117
43,982
Other investment income
2,211
1,939
30
44
Total interest income
52,358
45,965
Interest expense:
Deposits
22,105
17,376
FHLB advances and other borrowings
3,168
2,356
Total interest expense
25,273
19,732
Net interest income
27,085
26,233
Provision for credit losses
(140)
Net interest income after provision for credit losses
27,225
Noninterest income:
Service charges on deposit accounts
447
449
Other service charges, commissions and fees
1,612
874
Gain on sale of residential mortgage loans
222
Mortgage servicing income, net
229
(96)
Gain on sale of SBA loans
1,051
1,969
SBA servicing income, net
1,496
1,814
Other income
511
1,134
Total noninterest income
5,568
6,144
Noninterest expense:
Salaries and employee benefits
7,370
6,366
Occupancy and equipment
1,354
1,214
Data processing
294
275
Advertising
172
146
Other expenses
3,171
2,806
Total noninterest expense
12,361
10,807
Income before provision for income taxes
20,432
21,570
Provision for income taxes
5,801
5,840
Net income available to common shareholders
14,631
15,730
Earnings per share:
Basic
0.58
0.63
Diluted
0.57
0.62
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (Unaudited)
(Dollars in thousands)
Net income
Other comprehensive gain (loss):
Unrealized holding (losses) gains on securities available for sale
(286)
368
Net changes in fair value of cash flow hedges
7,408
(5,134)
Tax effect
(1,985)
1,254
Other comprehensive gain (loss)
5,137
(3,512)
Comprehensive income
19,768
12,218
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY (Unaudited)
Accumulated
Common Stock
Additional
Other
Number of
Paid-in
Retained
Comprehensive
Shares
Amount
Capital
Earnings
Income (Loss)
Total
Three Months Ended:
Balance, January 1, 2024
25,205,506
Stock based compensation expense
406
Other comprehensive income
Dividends declared on common stock ($0.20 per share)
(5,087)
Balance, March 31, 2024
Balance, January 1, 2023
25,169,709
45,298
285,832
18,039
349,421
298
Repurchase of common stock
(26,034)
(1)
(552)
(553)
Impact of adoption of new accounting standard, net of tax(1)
(3,865)
Other comprehensive loss
Dividends declared on common stock ($0.18 per share)
(4,558)
Balance, March 31, 2023
25,143,675
251
45,044
293,139
14,527
352,961
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Unaudited)
Three Months Ended March 31,
Cash flow from operating activities:
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation, amortization and accretion
752
705
Unrealized losses recognized on equity securities
47
(128)
(Gain) loss on sale of foreclosed real estate
(547)
Writedown of foreclosed real estate
14
Gain on sale of residential real estate loans
(222)
Origination of SBA loans held for sale
(24,631)
(36,969)
Proceeds from sales of SBA loans held for sale
25,682
38,938
(1,051)
(1,969)
Increase in cash value of bank owned life insurance
(535)
(435)
Increase in accrued interest receivable
(561)
(471)
Increase in SBA and USDA servicing rights
(360)
(706)
Decrease in mortgage servicing rights
336
768
Decrease (increase) in other assets
168
(33)
(Decrease) increase in accrued interest payable
(1,074)
942
Increase in other liabilities
22,897
9,410
Net cash flow provided by operating activities
36,359
25,533
Cash flow from investing activities:
Proceeds from maturities, calls or paydowns of securities available for sale
134
421
Purchase of Federal Home Loan Bank stock
(1,217)
(166)
Proceeds from sales of residential real estate loans
22,489
(Increase) decrease in loans, net
(46,372)
43,673
Purchases of premises and equipment
(243)
(1,162)
Proceeds from sales of foreclosed real estate owned
4,109
Net cash flow (used) provided by investing activities
(25,209)
46,875
Cash flow from financing activities:
Dividends paid on common stock
(5,041)
(4,526)
Repurchases of common stock
Increase (decrease) in deposits, net
82,922
(22,745)
Decrease in other borrowings, net
(5)
Proceeds from Federal Home Loan Bank advances
75,000
125,000
Repayments of Federal Home Loan Bank advances
(50,000)
(125,000)
Net cash flow provided (used) by financing activities
102,881
(27,829)
Continued to following page.
Net change in cash and cash equivalents
114,031
44,579
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period
179,485
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period
224,064
Supplemental schedule of noncash investing and financing activities:
Transfer of residential real estate loans to loans held for sale
Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information - Cash paid during the year for:
Interest
26,347
18,790
Income taxes
225
686
8
NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
MARCH 31, 2024
NOTE 1 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements include the accounts of MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. (“Company”) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Metro City Bank (the “Bank”). The Company owns 100% of the Bank. The “Company” or “our,” as used herein, includes Metro City Bank unless the context indicates that we refer only to MetroCity Bankshares, Inc.
These unaudited consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) followed within the financial services industry for interim financial information and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information or notes required for complete financial statements.
The Company principally operates in one business segment, which is community banking.
In the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting of normal and recurring items, considered necessary for a fair presentation of the consolidated financial statements for the interim periods have been included. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Certain amounts reported in prior periods have been reclassified to conform to current year presentation. These reclassifications did not have a material effect on previously reported net income, shareholders’ equity or cash flows.
Operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2024 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2024. These statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2023.
The Company’s significant accounting policies are described in Note 1 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2023, which are included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 (the “Company’s 2023 Form 10-K”). There were no new accounting policies or changes to existing policies adopted during the first three months of 2024 which had a significant effect on the Company’s results of operations or statement of financial condition. For interim reporting purposes, the Company follows the same basic accounting policies and considers each interim period as an integral part of an annual period.
Contingencies
Due to the nature of their activities, the Company and its subsidiary are at times engaged in various legal proceedings that arise in the course of normal business, some of which were outstanding as of March 31, 2024. Although the ultimate outcome of all claims and lawsuits outstanding as of March 31, 2024 cannot be ascertained at this time, it is the opinion of management that these matters, when resolved, will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations or financial condition.
Recently Issued Disclosure Rules
In March 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted the final rule under SEC Release No. 33-11275, “The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors”. This rule will require registrants to disclose certain climate-related information in registration statements and annual reports. The disclosure requirements will apply to the Company's fiscal year beginning January 1, 2026. The Company is currently evaluating the final rule to determine its impact on the Company's disclosures.
The Company has evaluated the Accounting Standards Updates issued during 2024 to date but does not expect those updates to have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.
Accounting Standards Adopted in 2023
In January 2023, the Company adopted ASU 2016-13, “Financial Instruments—Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments”. This ASU significantly changed how entities measure credit losses for most financial assets and certain other instruments that are not measured at fair value through net income. The standard replaced the incurred loss approach with an expected loss model, referred to as the current expected credit loss (“CECL”) model. The new standard applies to financial assets subject to credit losses and measured at amortized cost and certain off-balance-sheet credit exposures, which include, but are not limited to, loans, leases, held-to-maturity securities, loan commitments and financial guarantees. ASU 2016-13 simplifies the accounting for purchased credit-impaired debt securities and loans and expands the disclosure requirements regarding an entity’s assumptions, models and methods for estimating the allowance for credit losses. In addition, under the new standard, entities are required to disclose the amortized cost balance for each class of financial asset by credit quality indicator, disaggregated by the year of origination. ASU No. 2016-13 was effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2022. With its adoption, ASU 2016-13 provided for a modified retrospective transition by means of a cumulative effect adjustment to equity as of the beginning of the period in which the guidance was effective.
The Company adopted ASU 2016-13 and all related subsequent amendments thereto effective January 1, 2023 using the modified retrospective approach. The adoption of this standard resulted in an increase to the allowance for credit losses on loans of $5.1 million and the creation of an allowance for unfunded commitments of $239,000. These one-time cumulative adjustments resulted in a $3.8 million decrease to retained earnings, net of a $1.5 million increase to deferred tax assets.
For available for sale (“AFS”) securities, the new CECL methodology replaced the other-than-temporary impairment model and required the recognition of an allowance for reductions in a security’s fair value attributable to declines in credit quality, instead of a direct write-down of the security, when a valuation decline was determined to be other-than-temporary. There was no financial impact related to this implementation since the credit risk associated with our securities portfolio was minimal. The Company has made a policy election to exclude accrued interest from the amortized cost basis of AFS securities. Accrued interest receivable for AFS securities totaled $78,000 and $115,000 as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. This accrued interest receivable is included in the “accrued interest receivable” line item on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets.
In January 2023, the Company adopted ASU 2022-02, “Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage Disclosures”, which eliminated the accounting guidance for troubled debt restructurings (“TDRs”) while enhancing disclosure requirements for certain loan refinancing and restructurings by creditors when a borrower is experiencing financial difficulty. This guidance was applied on a prospective basis. Upon adoption of this guidance, the Company no longer establishes a specific reserve for modifications to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty, unless those loans do not share the same risk characteristics with other loans in the portfolio or are considered collateral dependent. Provided that is not the case, these modifications are included in their respective cohort and the allowance for credit losses is estimated on a pooled basis consistent with the other loans with similar risk characteristics. See Note 3 below for further details.
The following new accounting policies were adopted during 2023:
Allowance for Credit Losses – Available for Sale Securities
The impairment model for available for sale (“AFS”) securities differs from the CECL approach utilized by HTM debt securities because AFS debt securities are measured at fair value rather than amortized cost. Although ASU 2016-13 replaced the legacy other-than-temporary impairment (“OTTI”) model with a credit loss model, it retained the fundamental nature of the legacy OTTI model. One notable change from the legacy OTTI model is when evaluating whether credit loss exists, an entity may no longer consider the length of time fair value has been less than amortized cost. For AFS debt securities in an unrealized loss position, the Company first assesses whether it intends to sell, or it is more likely than not that it will be required to sell the security before recovery of its amortized cost basis. If either criteria is met, the security’s amortized cost basis is written down to fair value through income. For AFS debt securities that do not meet the
10
aforementioned criteria, the Company evaluates whether the decline in fair value has resulted from credit losses or other factors. In making this assessment, management considers the extent to which fair value is less than amortized cost, any changes to the rating of the security by a rating agency, and adverse conditions specifically related to the security, among other factors. If this assessment indicates that a credit loss exists, the present value of cash flows expected to be collected from the security are compared to the amortized cost basis of the security. If the present value of cash flows expected to be collected is less than the amortized cost basis, a credit loss exists and an allowance for credit losses is recorded for the credit loss, limited by the amount that the fair value is less than the amortized cost basis. Any impairment that has not been recorded through an allowance for credit losses is recognized in other comprehensive income. As of March 31, 2024, the Company determined that the unrealized loss positions in AFS securities were not the result of credit losses, and therefore, an allowance for credit losses was not recorded. See Note 2 below for further details.
Allowance for Credit Losses - Loans
Under the CECL model, the allowance for credit losses (“ACL”) on loans is a valuation allowance estimated at each balance sheet date in accordance with GAAP that is deducted from the loans’ amortized cost basis to present the net amount expected to be collected on the loans.
The Company estimates the ACL on loans based on the underlying loans’ amortized cost basis, which is the amount at which the financing receivable is originated or acquired, adjusted for applicable accretion or amortization of premium, discount, and net deferred fees or costs, collection of cash, and charge-offs. In the event that collection of principal becomes uncertain, the Company has policies in place to reverse accrued interest in a timely manner. Therefore, the Company has made a policy election to exclude accrued interest from the measurement of ACL.
Expected credit losses are reflected in the allowance for credit losses through a charge to provision for credit losses. When the Company deems all or a portion of a loan to be uncollectible the appropriate amount is written off and the ACL is reduced by the same amount. Loans are charged off against the ACL when management believes the collection of the principal is unlikely. Subsequent recoveries of previously charged off amounts, if any, are credited to the ACL when received.
The Company measures expected credit losses of loans on a collective (pool) basis, when the loans share similar risk characteristics. Depending on the nature of the pool of loans with similar risk characteristics, the Company uses the discounted cash flow (“DCF”) method and a qualitative approach as discussed further below.
The Company’s methodologies for estimating the ACL consider available relevant information about the collectability of cash flows, including information about past events, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. The methodologies apply historical loss information, adjusted for loan-specific characteristics, economic conditions at the measurement date, and forecasts about future economic conditions expected to exist through the contractual lives of the loans that are reasonable and supportable, to the identified pools of loans with similar risk characteristics for which the historical loss experience was observed. The Company’s methodologies revert back to historical loss information on a straight-line basis over eight quarters when it can no longer develop reasonable and supportable forecasts.
The Company has identified the following pools of loans with similar risk characteristics for measuring expected credit losses:
Construction and development – Loans in this segment primarily include real estate development loans for which payment is derived from the sale of the property as well as construction projects in which the property will ultimately be used by the borrower. Credit risk is affected by cost overruns, time to sell at an adequate price, and market conditions.
Commercial real estate – Loans in this segment are primarily income-producing properties. The underlying cash flows generated by the properties are adversely impacted by a downturn in the economy as evidenced by increased vacancy rates, which in turn, will have an effect on the credit quality in this segment. Management monitors the cash flows of these loans. This loan segment includes farmland loans.
11
Commercial and industrial – Loans in this segment are made to businesses and are generally secured by assets of the business. Repayment is expected from the cash flows of the business. A weakened economy, and resultant decreased customer spending, will have an effect on the credit quality in this segment.
Single family residential mortgages – Loans in this segment include loans for residential real estate. Loans in this segment are dependent on credit quality of the individual borrower. The overall health of the economy, including unemployment rates will have an effect on the credit quality of this segment.
Consumer and other – Loans in this segment are made to individuals and are secured by personal assets, as well as loans for personal lines of credit and overdraft protection. Loans in this segment are dependent on the credit quality of the individual borrower. The overall health of the economy, including unemployment rates will have an effect on the credit quality in this segment.
Discounted Cash Flow Method
The Company uses the discounted cash flow method to estimate expected credit losses for each of its loan segments. The Company generates cash flow projections at the instrument level wherein payment expectations are adjusted for estimated prepayment speed, curtailments, time to recovery, probability of default, and loss given default. The modeling of expected prepayment speeds, curtailment rates, and time to recovery are based on benchmark peer data.
The Company uses regression analysis of peer data to determine suitable loss drivers to utilize when modeling lifetime probability of default and loss given default. This analysis also determines how expected probability of default and loss given default will react to forecasted levels of the loss drivers. For all loan pools utilizing the DCF method, the Company uses national data including gross domestic product, unemployment rates and home price indices (residential mortgage loans only) depending on the nature of the underlying loan pool and how well that loss driver correlates to expected future losses.
For all DCF models, management has determined that four quarters represents a reasonable and supportable forecast period and reverts back to a historical loss rate over eight quarters on a straight-line basis. Management leverages economic projections from a reputable and independent third party to inform its loss driver forecasts over the four-quarter forecast period. Other internal and external indicators of economic forecasts are also considered by management when developing the forecast metrics.
The combination of adjustments for credit expectations (default and loss) and timing expectations (prepayment, curtailment, and time to recovery) produces an expected cash flow stream at the instrument level. Instrument effective yield is calculated, net of the impacts of prepayment assumptions, and the instrument expected cash flows are then discounted at that effective yield to produce an instrument-level net present value of expected cash flows (“NPV”). An ACL is established for the difference between the instrument’s NPV and amortized cost basis.
Qualitative Factors
The Company also considers qualitative adjustments to the quantitative baseline discussed above. For example, the Company considers the impact of current environmental factors at the reporting date that did not exist over the period from which historical experience was used. Relevant factors include, but are not limited to, concentrations of credit risk (geographic, large borrower, and industry), changes in underwriting standards, changes in collateral value, experience and depth of lending staff, trends in delinquencies, and the volume and terms of loans.
Individually Analyzed Loans
Loans that do not share risk characteristics are evaluated on an individual basis. For collateral dependent loans where the Company has determined that foreclosure of the collateral is probable, or where the borrower is experiencing financial difficulty and the Company expects repayment of the loan to be provided substantially through the operation or sale of the collateral, the ACL is measured based on the difference between the fair value of the collateral and the amortized cost basis of the loan as of the measurement date. When repayment is expected to be from the operation of the collateral,
12
expected credit losses are calculated as the amount by which the amortized cost basis of the loan exceeds the present value of expected cash flows from the operation of the collateral. When repayment is expected to be from the sale of the collateral, expected credit losses are calculated as the amount by which the amortized costs basis of the loan exceeds the fair value of the underlying collateral less estimated cost to sell. The ACL may be zero if the fair value of the collateral at the measurement date exceeds the amortized cost basis of the loan.
Allowance for Unfunded Commitments
The Company records an allowance for credit losses on unfunded loan commitments, unless the commitments to extend credit are unconditionally cancelable, through a charge to provision for unfunded commitments in the Company’s Consolidated Statements of Income. The ACL on off-balance sheet credit exposures is estimated by loan segment at each balance sheet date under the CECL model using the same methodologies as portfolio loans, taking into consideration the likelihood that funding will occur. The allowance for unfunded commitments totaled $310,000 and $315,000 as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, and is included in Other Liabilities on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets.
NOTE 2 – INVESTMENT SECURITIES
The amortized costs, gross unrealized gains and losses, and estimated fair values of securities available for sale as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 are summarized as follows:
Gross
Estimated
Amortized
Unrealized
Fair
Cost
Gains
Losses
Value
Obligations of U.S. Government entities and agencies
4,595
States and political subdivisions
8,060
(1,369)
6,691
Mortgage-backed GSE residential
8,573
(1,802)
6,771
21,228
(3,171)
December 31, 2023
4,637
8,072
(1,290)
6,782
8,669
(1,595)
7,074
21,378
(2,885)
The amortized costs and estimated fair values of investment securities available for sale at March 31, 2024 by contractual maturity are shown below. Expected maturities will differ from contractual maturities because borrowers may have the right to call or prepay obligations with or without call or prepayment penalties.
Securities Available for Sale
Fair Value
Due in one year or less
Due after one year but less than five years
5,835
5,807
Due after five years but less than ten years
Due in more than ten years
6,820
5,479
13
Accrued interest receivable for securities available for sale totaled $78,000 and $115,000 as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. This accrued interest receivable is included in the “accrued interest receivable” line item on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets.
As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had securities pledged to the Federal Reserve Bank Discount Window with a carrying amount of $13.5 million and $13.9 million, respectively. There were no securities sold during the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
Information pertaining to securities with gross unrealized losses at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 aggregated by investment category and length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous loss position, are summarized in the table below.
Twelve Months or Less
Over Twelve Months
1,369
1,802
13,462
1,290
1,595
2,885
13,856
At March 31, 2024, the nineteen securities available for sale (11 municipal securities and 8 mortgage-backed securities) with an unrealized loss have depreciated 19.07% from the Company’s amortized cost basis. All of these securities have been in a loss position for greater than twelve months.
The Company does not believe that the securities available for sale that were in an unrealized loss position as of March 31, 2024 represent a credit loss impairment. As of March 31, 2024, there have been no payment defaults nor do we currently expect any future payment defaults. Furthermore, the Company does not intend to sell these securities, and it is not more likely than not that the Company will be required to sell the investment securities before recovery of their amortized cost basis, which may be at maturity.
Equity Securities
As of both March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had equity securities with carrying values totaling $10.3 million. The equity securities consist of our investment in a market-rate bond mutual fund that invests in high quality fixed income bonds, mainly government agency securities whose proceeds are designed to positively impact community development throughout the United States. The mutual fund focuses exclusively on providing affordable housing to low- and moderate-income borrowers and renters, including those in Majority Minority Census Tracts.
During the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, we recognized an unrealized loss of $47,000 and an unrealized gain on $128,000, respectively, in net income on our equity securities. These unrealized gains and losses are recorded in Other Income on the Consolidated Statements of Income.
NOTE 3 – LOANS AND ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES
Major classifications of loans at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 are summarized as follows:
Construction and development
27,762
23,262
Commercial real estate
724,263
711,177
Commercial and industrial
68,560
65,904
Residential real estate
2,303,400
2,350,299
Consumer and other
247
319
Total loans receivable
3,124,232
3,150,961
Unearned income
(8,361)
(8,856)
Allowance for credit losses
(17,982)
(18,112)
Loans, net
The Company is not committed to lend additional funds to borrowers with nonaccrual or restructured loans.
In the normal course of business, the Company may sell and purchase loan participations to and from other financial institutions and related parties. Commercial loan participations are sold as needed to comply with the legal lending limits per borrower as imposed by regulatory authorities. The participations are sold without recourse and the Company imposes no transfer or ownership restrictions on the purchaser.
The Company elected to exclude accrued interest receivable from the amortized cost basis of loans disclosed throughout this note. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, accrued interest receivable for loans totaled $15.6 million and $15.0 million, respectively, and is included in the “accrued interest receivable” line item on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Allowance for Credit Losses
As previously mentioned in Note 1, the Company’s January 1, 2023 adoption of ASU 2016-13 resulted in a significant change to our methodology for estimating the allowance for credit losses since December 31, 2022. As a result of this adoption, the Company recorded a $5.1 million increase to the allowance for credit losses as a cumulative-effect adjustment on January 1, 2023.
A summary of changes in the allowance for credit losses by portfolio segment for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023 is as follows:
Three Months Ended March 31, 2024
Construction
and
Commercial
Residential
Consumer
Development
Real Estate
and Industrial
and Other
Unallocated
Allowance for credit losses:
Beginning balance
46
6,876
588
10,597
18,112
Charge-offs
Recoveries
1
Provision expense
43
28
142
(344)
(3)
(134)
Ending balance
89
6,905
733
10,253
17,982
15
Three Months Ended March 31, 2023
124
2,811
1,326
9,626
13,888
Impact of adopting ASU 2016-13
(79)
3,275
(307)
2,166
5,055
45
6,088
1,021
11,792
18,947
Collateral-Dependent Loans
Collateral-dependent loans are loans for which foreclosure is probable or loans for which the borrower is experiencing financial difficulty and repayment is expected to be provided substantially through the operation or sale of the collateral. The estimated credit losses for these loans are based on the collateral’s fair value less selling costs. In most cases, the Company records a partial charge-off to reduce the loan’s carrying value to the collateral’s fair value less selling costs at the time of foreclosure. As of March 31, 2024, there were $11.5 million, $2.3 million and $4,000 of collateral-dependent loans which were secured by residential real estate, commercial real estate and equipment, respectively. As of December 31, 2023, there were $11.9 million, $2.8 million and $4,000 of collateral-dependent loans which were secured by residential real estate, commercial real estate and equipment, respectively. The allowance for credit losses allocated to these loans as of both March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 was $282,000.
Past Due and Nonaccrual Loans
A primary credit quality indicator for financial institutions is delinquent balances. Delinquencies are updated on a daily basis and are continuously monitored. Loans are placed on nonaccrual status as needed based on repayment status and consideration of accounting and regulatory guidelines. Nonaccrual balances are updated and reported on a daily basis.
The following summarizes the Company’s past due and nonaccrual loans, by portfolio segment, as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023:
Accruing
Greater than
Financing
Current
30-59 Days
60-89 Days
90 Days
Past Due
Nonaccrual
Receivables
27,631
713,250
7,674
469
721,393
66,577
392
1,314
68,283
2,281,841
4,186
776
4,962
11,514
2,298,317
3,089,546
12,252
13,028
13,297
3,115,871
22,568
548
23,116
702,564
3,752
1,005
4,757
991
708,312
64,103
112
101
213
1,286
65,602
2,315,285
15,073
2,541
17,614
11,857
2,344,756
3,104,839
18,937
3,647
22,584
14,682
3,142,105
16
The following table presents an analysis of nonaccrual loans with and without a related allowance for credit losses as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023:
Loans With a
Loans Without a
Related ACL
Nonaccrual Loans
234
235
262
13,035
757
14,448
All payments received while a loan is on nonaccrual status are applied against the principal balance of the loan. The Company does not recognize interest income while loans are on nonaccrual status.
Credit Quality Indicators
The Company utilizes a ten grade loan risk rating system for its loan portfolio as follows:
Loan grades are monitored regularly and updated as necessary based upon review of repayment status and consideration of periodic updates regarding the borrower’s financial condition and capacity to meet contractual requirements.
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The following tables present the loan portfolio's amortized cost by loan type, risk rating and year of origination as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. There were no loans with a risk rating of Doubtful or Loss at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023.
Term Loan by Origination Year
Revolving
2022
2021
2020
Prior
Loans
Total Loans
Pass
50
9,023
16,409
1,179
250
27,083
Special Mention
Substandard
Total construction and development
720
40,180
138,513
185,179
100,336
65,450
178,545
4,180
712,383
1,913
661
2,574
585
233
5,618
6,436
Total commercial real estate
185,764
67,596
184,824
1,319
16,923
12,152
4,553
3,121
4,883
22,062
65,013
1,345
1,330
353
242
1,925
Total commercial and industrial
5,883
3,474
6,470
62,016
247,620
702,817
811,601
276,707
184,585
2,285,346
355
118
1,723
1,817
8,958
12,971
Total residential real estate
247,975
702,935
813,324
278,524
193,543
Total consumer and other
Total loans
103,812
412,434
917,260
920,263
350,773
385,087
26,242
18
2019
7,715
13,273
1,187
259
682
157,572
197,590
104,480
80,124
34,147
115,147
4,240
693,300
590
7,681
4,583
13,087
198,180
82,282
41,828
119,730
Commercial real estate:
Current period gross write offs
224
231
455
16,411
13,324
3,192
2,353
3,141
19,315
62,331
211
1,201
1,412
1,282
352
205
20
1,859
5,877
3,544
2,769
4,362
Commercial and industrial:
79
88
309
300,773
717,527
833,840
284,535
60,356
134,859
2,331,890
357
1,421
2,474
1,382
7,232
12,866
717,884
835,261
287,009
61,738
142,091
482,790
942,661
946,300
374,022
106,335
266,442
23,555
No revolving loans were converted to permanent loans during the three months ended March 31, 2024. During the year ended December 31, 2023, five construction and development revolving loans totaling $30.1 million were converted to commercial real estate term loans.
Loan Modifications to Borrowers Experiencing Financial Difficulty.
In January 2023, the Company adopted ASU 2022-02, “Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage Disclosures”, which eliminated the accounting guidance for troubled debt restructurings (“TDRs”) while enhancing disclosure requirements for certain loan refinancing and restructurings by creditors when a borrower is experiencing financial difficulty. This guidance was applied on a prospective basis. Upon adoption of this guidance, the Company no longer establishes a specific reserve for modifications to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty, unless those loans do not share the same risk characteristics with other loans in the portfolio. Provided that is not the case, these modifications are included in their respective cohort and the allowance for credit losses is estimated on a pooled basis consistent with the other loans with similar risk characteristics.
Modifications to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty may include interest rate reductions, principal or interest forgiveness, payment deferrals, term extensions, and other actions intended to minimize economic loss and to avoid foreclosure or repossession of collateral.
No loan modifications were made to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty during the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023. No loan modifications previously made to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty defaulted during
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the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023. No charge-offs of previously modified loans were recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
NOTE 4 – SBA AND USDA LOAN SERVICING
The Company sells the guaranteed portion of certain SBA and USDA loans it originates and continues to service the sold portion of the loan. The portion of the loans sold are not included in the financial statements of the Company. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the unpaid principal balances of serviced loans totaled $516.4 million and $508.0 million, respectively.
Activity for SBA and USDA loan servicing rights are as follows:
For the Three Months Ended March 31,
Beginning of period
7,038
Change in fair value
360
698
End of period, fair value
7,736
Fair value at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 was determined using discount rates ranging from 7.94% to 12.69% and 8.66% to 14.73%, respectively, and prepayment speeds ranging from 7.90% to 20.89% and 7.29% to 20.23%, respectively, depending on the stratification of the specific right. Average default rates are based on the industry average for the applicable NAICS/SIC code.
Comparable market values and a valuation model that calculates the present value of future cash flows were used to estimate fair value. For purposes of fair value measurement, risk characteristics including product type and interest rate, were used to stratify the originated loan servicing rights.
NOTE 5 – RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE LOAN SERVICING
Residential mortgage loans serviced for others are not reported as assets. The outstanding principal of these loans at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 was $443.9 million and $443.1 million, respectively.
Activity for mortgage loan servicing rights and the related valuation allowance are as follows:
Mortgage loan servicing rights:
3,973
Additions
136
Amortization expense
(472)
(768)
Valuation allowance
End of period, carrying value
3,205
Valuation allowance:
Additions expensed
Reductions credited to operations
Direct write-downs
The fair value of servicing rights was $6.4 million and $6.3 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. Fair value at March 31, 2024 was determined by using a discount rate of 13.01%, prepayment speeds of 15.85%, and a weighted average default rate of 1.52%. Fair value at December 31, 2023 was determined by using a discount rate of 13.04%, prepayment speeds of 16.16%, and a weighted average default rate of 1.49%.
NOTE 6 – FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK ADVANCES & OTHER BORROWINGS
Advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank (“FHLB”) at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 are summarized as follows:
Convertible advance maturing February 13, 2026; fixed rate of 4.184%
50,000
Convertible advance maturing January 25, 2028; fixed rate of 3.243%
Convertible advance maturing February 14, 2028; fixed rate of 3.625%
25,000
Convertible advance maturing June 23, 2028; fixed rate of 3.655%
Convertible advance maturing November 8, 2028; fixed rate of 3.607%
Convertible advance maturing November 8, 2028; fixed rate of 3.745%
Convertible advance maturing November 14, 2028; fixed rate of 3.519%
Convertible advance maturing January 24, 2029; fixed rate of 3.315%
Convertible advance maturing January 25, 2029; fixed rate of 3.295%
Total FHLB advances
The FHLB advances outstanding at March 31, 2024 all have a conversion feature that allows the FHLB to call the advances every three months ($175.0 million), six months ($50.0 million) or one year ($125.0 million). At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had a line of credit with the FHLB, set as a percentage of total assets, with maximum borrowing capacity of $1.04 billion and $1.05 billion, respectively. The available borrowing amounts are collateralized by the Company’s FHLB stock and pledged residential real estate loans, which totaled $2.29 billion and $2.32 billion at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively.
At March 31, 2024, the Company had unsecured federal funds lines available with correspondent banks of approximately $47.5 million. There were no advances outstanding on these lines at March 31, 2024.
At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had Federal Reserve Discount Window funds available of approximately $480.8 million and $433.2 million. The funds are collateralized by a pool of construction and development, commercial real estate and commercial and industrial loans with carrying balances totaling $620.9 million and $604.0 million as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, as well as all of the Company’s municipal and mortgage backed securities. There were no outstanding borrowings on this line as of March 31, 2024.
NOTE 7 – OPERATING LEASES
The Company has entered into various operating leases for certain branch locations with terms extending through October 2033. Generally, these leases have initial lease terms of ten years or less. Many of the leases have one or more renewal options which typically are for five years at the then fair market rental rates. We assessed these renewal options using a threshold of reasonably certain. For leases where we were reasonably certain to renew, those option periods were included within the lease term, and therefore, the measurement of the right-of-use (“ROU”) asset and lease liability. None of our leases included options to terminate the lease and none had initial terms of 12 months or less (i.e. short-term leases). Operating leases in which the Company is the lessee are recorded as operating lease ROU assets and operating lease liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company currently does not have any finance leases.
Operating lease ROU assets represent the Company’s right to use an underlying asset during the lease term and operating lease liabilities represent its obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. ROU assets and operating lease liabilities are recognized at lease commencement based on the present value of the remaining lease payments using a discount rate that represents the Company’s incremental collateralized borrowing rate provided by the FHLB at the lease commencement date. ROU assets are further adjusted for lease incentives, if any. Operating lease expense, which is comprised of amortization of the ROU asset and the implicit interest accreted on the operating lease liability, is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term, and is recorded in occupancy expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income.
21
The components of lease cost for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023 were as follows:
Operating lease cost
557
541
Variable lease cost
49
Short-term lease cost
Sublease income
Total net lease cost
606
Future maturities of the Company’s operating lease liabilities are summarized as follows:
Twelve Months Ended:
Lease Liability
March 31, 2025
2,039
March 31, 2026
1,782
March 31, 2027
1,547
March 31, 2028
1,272
March 31, 2029
844
After March 31, 2029
1,624
Total lease payments
9,108
Less: interest discount
(919)
Present value of lease liabilities
Supplemental Lease Information
Weighted-average remaining lease term (years)
6.0
Weighted-average discount rate
3.57
%
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities:
Operating cash flows from operating leases (cash payments)
534
513
Operating cash flows from operating leases (lease liability reduction)
462
Operating lease right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for leases entered into during the period
NOTE 8 – INTEREST RATE DERIVATIVES
During 2021 and 2022, the Company entered into fourteen separate interest rate swap agreements with notional amounts totaling $800.0 million. Six of the interest rate swaps are two-year forward three-year term swaps (five-year total term) where cash settlements began in October 2023, January 2024 or April 2024. Four of the interest rate swaps are two-year forward two-year term swaps (four-year total term) where cash settlements began in November 2023 or April 2024. Two of the interest rate swaps are a one-year forward two-year term swap (three-year total term) and a one-year forward three-year term swap (four-year term total) where cash settlements began in May 2023 or July 2023. The two remaining interest rate swaps are 3-year spot swaps where cash settlements began in June 2022 and December 2022. The swap agreements were designated as cash flow hedges of our deposit accounts that are indexed to the Federal Funds Effective rate. The swaps are determined to be highly effective since inception and therefore no amount of ineffectiveness has been included in net income. The aggregate fair value of the swaps amounted to an unrealized gain of $36.3 million and $29.7 million and an unrealized loss of $0 and $476,000 at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. These unrealized gains and losses are recorded in Interest Rate Derivatives and Other Liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company expects the hedges to remain highly effective during the remaining terms of the swaps.
During October 2021, the Company entered into an interest rate cap agreement with a notional amount of $50.0 million and a cap rate of 2.50%. This interest rate cap is a two-year forward three-year term (five-year total term) where
22
cash settlements began in November 2023. The interest rate cap was designated as a cash flow hedge of our deposit accounts that are indexed to the Federal Funds Effective rate. The rate cap premium paid by the Company at inception will be amortized on a straight line basis to deposit interest expense over the total term of the interest rate cap agreement. The fair value of the interest rate cap amounted to an unrealized gain of $2.4 million and $2.1 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, and are recorded in Interest Rate Derivatives on the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
The Company is exposed to credit related losses in the event of the nonperformance by the counterparties to the interest rate swaps. The Company performs an initial credit evaluation and ongoing monitoring procedures for all counterparties and currently anticipates that all counterparties will be able to fully satisfy their obligation under the contracts. In addition, the Company may require collateral from counterparties in the form of cash deposits in the event that the fair value of the contracts are positive and such fair value for all positions with the counterparty exceeds the credit support thresholds specified by the underlying agreement. Conversely, the Company is required to post cash deposits as collateral in the event the fair value of the contracts are negative and are below the credit support thresholds. At March 31, 2024, there were no cash deposits pledged as collateral by the Company. At March 31, 2024, the Company had $38.2 million of restricted cash obtained from the counterparties as collateral for the significant unrealized gains on our interest rate derivatives.
Summary information for the interest rate swaps designated as cash flow hedges is as follows:
As of or for the
Year Ended
Notional Amounts
800,000
Weighted-average pay rate
2.28%
Weighted-average receive rate
5.33%
5.03%
Weighted-average maturity
4.2 years
Weighted-average remaining maturity
2.1 years
2.4 years
3,738
5,246
Summary information for the interest rate caps designated as cash flow hedges is as follows:
Rate Cap Premiums
350
Cap Rate
2.50%
5.0 years
2.6 years
2.8 years
327
139
NOTE 9 – LOAN COMMITMENTS AND RELATED FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
The Company is a party to financial instruments with off-balance-sheet risk in the normal course of business to meet the financing needs of its customers. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. Those instruments involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit and interest rate risk in excess of the amount recognized in the balance sheets. The contract amounts of those instruments reflect the extent of involvement the Company has in particular classes of financial instruments.
The Company’s exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the other party to the financial instrument for commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit written is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments. The Company uses the same credit policies in making commitments and conditional obligations as it does for
23
on-balance-sheet instruments. Financial instruments where contract amounts represent credit risk as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 include:
Financial instruments whose contract amounts represent credit risk:
Commitments to extend credit
54,625
68,083
Standby letters of credit
7,481
4,908
Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to a customer as long as there is no violation of any condition established in the contract. Commitments to extend credit includes $54.6 million of unused lines of credit and $7.5 million for standby letters of credit as of March 31, 2024. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. The Company evaluates each customer’s creditworthiness on a case-by-case basis. The amount of collateral obtained if deemed necessary by the Company upon extension of credit is based on management’s credit evaluation of the counterparty.
Standby letters of credit written are conditional commitments issued by the Company to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. The credit risk involved in issuing letters of credit is essentially the same as that involved in extending loan commitments to customers.
The Company maintains cash deposits with a financial institution that during the year are in excess of the insured limitation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. If the financial institution were not to honor its contractual liability, the Company could incur losses. Management is of the opinion that there is not material risk because of the financial strength of the institution.
NOTE 10 – FAIR VALUE
Financial Instruments Measured at Fair Value
Fair value is the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. There are three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair values:
Level 1 inputs utilize quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the Company has the ability to access.
Level 2 inputs are inputs other than quoted prices included in Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability in active markets, as well as inputs that are observable for the asset or liability (other than quoted prices), such as interest rates, foreign exchange rates and yield curves that are observable at commonly quoted intervals.
Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or liability, which are typically based on an entity’s own assumptions, as there is little, if any, related market activity. In instances where the determination of the fair value measurement is based on inputs from different levels of the fair value hierarchy, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the entire fair value measurement falls is based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.
The Company’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment, and considers factors specific to the asset or liability.
24
The following presents the assets and liabilities as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 which are measured at fair value on a recurring basis, aggregated by the level in the fair value hierarchy within which those measurements fall, and the financial instruments carried on the consolidated balance sheet by caption and by level in the fair value hierarchy, for which a nonrecurring change in fair value has been recorded:
Total Gains
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
(Losses)
Assets
Recurring fair value measurements:
Securities available for sale:
Total securities available for sale
74,638
52,144
12,206
Nonrecurring fair value measurements:
Collateral-dependent loans
1,525
221
(14)
1,746
(13)
67,860
45,637
11,888
1,526
(148)
526
(239)
2,052
(387)
Liabilities
Interest rate swaps
476
25
The Company used the following methods and significant assumptions to estimate fair value:
Securities, Available for Sale: The Company carries securities available for sale at fair value. For securities where quoted prices are not available (Level 2), the Company obtains fair value measurements from an independent pricing service. The fair value measurements consider observable data that may include dealer quotes, market spreads, cash flows, the U.S. Treasury yield curve, live trading levels, trade execution data, market consensus prepayment speeds, credit information and the bond’s terms and conditions, among other things. The investments in the Company’s portfolio are generally not quoted on an exchange but are actively traded in the secondary institutional markets.
The Company owns certain SBA investments for which the fair value is determined using Level 3 hierarchy inputs and assumptions as the trading market for such securities was determined to be “not active.” This determination was based on the limited number of trades or, in certain cases, the existence of no reported trades. Discounted cash flows are calculated by a third party using interest rate curves that are updated to incorporate current market conditions, including prepayment vectors and credit risk. During time when trading is more liquid, broker quotes are used to validate the model.
Equity Securities: The Company carries equity securities at fair value. Equity securities are measured at fair value using quoted market prices on nationally recognized and foreign securities exchanges (Level 1).
SBA Servicing Assets and Interest Only Strip: The fair values of the Company’s servicing assets are determined using Level 3 inputs. All separately recognized servicing assets and servicing liabilities are initially measured at fair value and at each reporting date and changes in fair value are reported in earnings in the period in which they occur.
The fair values of the Company’s interest-only strips are determined using Level 3 inputs. When the Company sells loans to others, it may hold interest-only strips, which is an interest that continues to be held by the transferor in the securitized receivable. It may also obtain servicing assets or assume servicing liabilities that are initially measured at fair value. Gain or loss on sale of the receivables depends in part on both (a) the previous carrying amount of the financial assets involved in the transfer, allocated between the assets sold and the interests that continue to be held by the transferor based on their relative fair value at the date of transfer, and (b) the proceeds received. To obtain fair values, quoted market prices are used if available. However, quotes are generally not available for interests that continue to be held by the transferor, so the Company generally estimates fair value based on the future expected cash flows estimated using management’s best estimates of the key assumptions — credit losses and discount rates commensurate with the risks involved.
Interest Rate Derivatives: Exchange-traded derivatives are valued using quoted prices and are classified within Level 1 of the valuation hierarchy. However, few classes of derivative contracts are listed on an exchange; thus, the Company’s derivative positions are valued by third parties using their valuation models and confirmed by the Company. Since the model inputs can be observed in a liquid market and the models do not require significant judgement, such derivative contracts are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy. The Company’s interest rate derivatives contracts (designated as cash flow hedges) are classified within Level 2.
Under certain circumstances we make adjustments to fair value for our assets and liabilities although they are not measured at fair value on an ongoing basis.
Collateral-dependent loans: Collateral-dependent loans are loans where repayment is expected to be provided solely by the sale of the underlying collateral and there are no other available and reliable sources of repayment. Fair value for both collateral-dependent loans are measured based on the value of the collateral securing these loans and are classified at a Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy. Collateral may include real estate, or business assets including equipment, inventory and accounts receivable. The value of real estate collateral is determined based on an appraisal by qualified licensed appraisers hired by the Company. The value of business equipment is based on an appraisal by qualified licensed appraisers hired by the Company if significant, or the equipment’s net book value on the business’ financial statements. Inventory and accounts receivable collateral are valued based on independent field examiner review or aging reports. Appraisals may utilize a single valuation approach or a combination or approaches including comparable sales and the income approach. Adjustments are routinely made in the appraisal process by the independent appraisers to adjust for differences between the comparable sales and income data available for similar loans and collateral underlying such loans. Appraised values
26
are reviewed by management using historical knowledge, market considerations, and knowledge of the client and client’s business.
Changes in level 3 fair value measurements
The table below presents a reconciliation of assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:
Obligations of
SBA and USDA
U.S. Government
Servicing
Interest Only
Entities and Agencies
Asset
Strip
Fair value, January 1, 2024
Total gains included in income
Settlements
Prepayments/paydowns
(42)
Transfers in and/or out of level 3
Fair value, March 31, 2024
Fair value, January 1, 2023
5,059
(225)
Fair value, March 31, 2023
4,834
27
There were no gains or losses included in earnings for securities measured at fair value on a recurring basis using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) during the periods presented above. The only activity for these securities were prepayments. There were no purchases, sales, or transfers into and out of Level 3. The following table presents quantitative information about recurring Level 3 fair value measures at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023:
Valuation
Unobservable
General
Technique
Input
Range
March 31, 2024:
Recurring:
Discounted cash flows
Discount rate
4%-6%
Prepayment speed
7.90%-20.89%
7.94%-12.69%
Nonrecurring:
Appraised value less estimated selling costs
Estimated selling costs
6%
Foreclosed real estate
December 31, 2023:
7.29%-20.23%
8.66%-14.73%
The carrying amounts and estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 are as follows:
Carrying
Estimated Fair Value at March 31, 2024
Financial Assets:
Cash, due from banks, and federal funds sold
Investment securities
28,345
FHLB stock
N/A
2,964,370
60
15,626
Mortgage servicing asset
6,386
Financial Liabilities:
2,811,888
349,965
Estimated Fair Value at December 31, 2023
28,828
2,982,789
15,024
6,344
2,729,024
322,075
NOTE 11 – REGULATORY MATTERS
Banks and bank holding companies are subject to regulatory capital requirements administered by federal banking agencies. Capital adequacy guidelines and, additionally for banks, prompt corrective action regulations, involve quantitative measures of assets, liabilities, and certain off-balance sheet items calculated under regulatory practices. Capital amounts and classifications are also subject to qualitative judgments by regulators. Failure to meet capital requirements can initiate regulatory action. Under the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s capital guidelines for U.S. banks (“Basel III rules”), the Bank must hold a capital conservation buffer of 2.50% above the adequately capitalized risk-based capital ratios. The net unrealized gain or loss on available for sale securities, if any, is not included in computing regulatory capital. Management believes as of March 31, 2024 the Company and Bank meet all capital adequacy requirements to which they are subject.
Prompt corrective action regulations provide five classifications: well capitalized, adequately capitalized, undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized, and critically undercapitalized, although these terms are not used to represent overall financial condition. If adequately capitalized, regulatory approval is required to accept brokered deposits. If undercapitalized, capital distributions are limited, as is asset growth and expansion, and capital restoration plans are required. At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the most recent regulatory notifications categorized the Bank as well capitalized under the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action. There are no conditions or events since that notification that management believes have changed the institution’s category.
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The table below summarizes the capital requirements applicable to the Company and the Bank in order to be considered “well-capitalized” from a regulatory perspective, as well as the Company’s and the Bank’s capital ratios as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. The Bank exceeded all regulatory capital requirements and was considered to be “well-capitalized” as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023.
To Be Well Capitalized
Minimum Capital Required -
Under Prompt Corrective
Actual
Basel III
Action Provisions:
Ratio
Amount ≥
Ratio ≥
As of March 31, 2024:
Total Capital (to Risk Weighted Assets)
Consolidated
381,938
17.81
225,198
10.5
Bank
379,982
17.72
225,197
214,474
10.0
Tier I Capital (to Risk Weighted Assets)
363,646
16.96
182,303
8.5
361,690
16.86
171,579
8.0
Common Tier 1 (CET1)
150,132
7.0
139,408
6.5
Tier 1 Capital (to Average Assets)
10.27
141,665
4.0
10.21
141,641
177,052
5.0
As of December 31, 2023:
372,482
17.60
222,188
370,459
17.51
222,181
211,601
354,055
16.73
179,867
352,032
16.64
179,861
169,281
148,125
148,121
137,541
10.20
138,790
10.15
138,763
173,454
NOTE 12 – STOCK BASED COMPENSATION
The Company adopted the MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. 2018 Stock Option Plan (the “Prior Option Plan”) effective as of April 18, 2018, and the Prior Option Plan was approved by the Company’s shareholders on May 30, 2018. The Prior Option Plan provided for awards of stock options to officers, employees and directors of the Company. The Board of Directors of the Company determined that it was in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders to amend and restate the Prior Option Plan to provide for the grant of additional types of awards. Acting pursuant to its authority under the Prior Option Plan, the Board of Directors approved and adopted the MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. 2018 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2018 Incentive Plan”), which constitutes the amended and restated version of the Prior Option Plan. The Board of Directors has reserved 2,400,000 shares of Company common stock for issuance pursuant to awards granted under the 2018 Incentive Plan, any or all of which may be granted as nonqualified stock options, incentive stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, performance awards and other stock-based awards. In the event all or a portion of a stock award is forfeited, cancelled, expires, or is terminated before becoming vested, paid, exercised, converted, or otherwise settled in full, any unissued or forfeited shares again become available for issuance pursuant to awards granted under the 2018 Incentive Plan and do not count against the maximum number of reserved shares. In addition, shares of common stock deducted or withheld to satisfy tax withholding obligations will be added back to the share reserve and will again be available for issuance pursuant to awards granted under the plan. The 2018 Incentive Plan is administered by the Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors (the “Committee”). The determination of award recipients under the
2018 Incentive Plan, and the terms of those awards, will be made by the Committee. At March 31, 2024, 240,000 stock options had been granted and 774,437 shares of restricted stock had been issued under the 2018 Incentive Plan.
Stock Options
A summary of stock option activity for the three months ended March 31, 2024 is presented below:
Weighted
Average
Exercise Price
Outstanding at January 1, 2024
240,000
12.70
Granted
Exercised
Forfeited
Outstanding at March 31, 2024
The Company recognized no compensation expense for stock options during the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, all of the cost related to the outstanding stock options had been recognized.
Restricted Stock Units
The Company has periodically issued restricted stock units to its directors, executive officers and certain employees under the 2018 Incentive Plan. Compensation expense for restricted stock is based upon the grant date fair value of the shares and is recognized over the vesting period of the units. Shares of restricted stock units issued to officers and employees vest in equal annual installments on the first three anniversaries of the grant date. Shares of restricted stock units issued to directors vest 25% on the grant date and 25% on each of the first three anniversaries of the grant date.
A summary of restricted stock activity for the three months ended March 31, 2024 is presented below:
Weighted-
Average Grant-
Nonvested Shares
Date Fair Value
Nonvested at January 1, 2024
230,221
17.71
Vested
Nonvested at March 31, 2024
During the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, the Company recognized compensation expense for restricted stock of $406,000 and $298,000, respectively. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, there was $2.6 million and $3.0 million, respectively, of total unrecognized compensation cost related to nonvested shares granted under the 2018 Incentive Plan. As of March 31, 2024, the cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.9 years.
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NOTE 13 – EARNINGS PER SHARE
The following table presents the calculation of basic and diluted earnings per common share for the periods indicated:
Basic earnings per share
Net Income
Weighted average common shares outstanding
25,144,683
Basic earnings per common share
Diluted earnings per share
Weighted average common shares outstanding for basic earnings per common share
Add: Dilutive effects of restricted stock and options
342,583
261,172
Average shares and dilutive potential common shares
25,548,089
25,405,855
Diluted earnings per common share
There were no stock options or restricted stock excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per common share since they were antidilutive for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
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Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The purpose of this discussion and analysis is to focus on significant changes in the financial condition of MetroCity Bancshares, Inc. and our wholly owned subsidiary, Metro City Bank, from December 31, 2023 through March 31, 2024 and on our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2023 included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, and information presented elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, particularly the unaudited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing in Item 1.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to, among other things, future events and our financial performance. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as “may,” “might,” “should,” “could,” “predict,” “potential,” “believe,” “expect,” “continue,” “will,” “anticipate,” “seek,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “strive,” “projection,” “goal,” “target,” “outlook,” “aim,” “would,” “annualized” and “outlook,” or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Accordingly, we caution you that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, assumptions, estimates and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, actual results may prove to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
A number of important factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements, including those factors discussed elsewhere in this quarterly report and the following:
34
35
The foregoing factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read together with the other cautionary statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Because of these risks and other uncertainties, our actual future results, performance or achievement, or industry results, may be materially different from the results indicated by the forward looking statements in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. In addition, our past results of operations are not necessarily indicative of our future results. You should not rely on any forward looking statements, which represent our beliefs, assumptions and estimates only as of the dates on which they were made, as predictions of future events. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.
CECL Adoption
On January 1, 2023, the Company adopted ASC Topic 326 which replaces the incurred loss approach for measuring credit losses with an expected loss model, referred to the current expected credit loss ("CECL") model. CECL applies to financial assets subject to credit losses and measured at amortized cost and certain off-balance-sheet credit exposures, which include, but are not limited to, loans, leases, held-to-maturity securities, loan commitments and financial guarantees. The adoption of this guidance resulted in an increase of the allowance for credit losses of $5.1 million, the creation of an allowance for unfunded commitments of $239,000 and a reduction of retained earnings of $3.8 million, net of the increase in deferred tax assets of $1.5 million.
The impact of utilizing the CECL approach to calculate the allowance for credit losses will be significantly influenced by the composition, characteristics and quality of our loan portfolio, as well as the prevailing economic conditions and forecasts utilized. Material changes to these and other relevant factors may result in greater volatility to the provision for credit losses, and therefore, greater volatility to our reported earnings. See Note 1 and Note 3 of our consolidated financial
36
statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on the allowance for credit losses and the allowance for unfunded commitments.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
Our accounting and reporting estimates conform with U.S. GAAP and general practices within the financial services industry. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. We consider accounting estimates that can (1) be replaced by other reasonable estimates and/or (2) changes to an estimate from period to period that have a material impact on the presentation of our financial condition, changes in financial condition or results of operations as well as (3) those estimates that require significant and complex assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain to be critical accounting estimates. We consider our critical accounting policies to include the allowance for credit losses, servicing assets, fair value of financial instruments and income taxes.
Critical accounting estimates include a high degree of uncertainty in the underlying assumptions. Management bases its estimates on historical experience, current information and other factors deemed relevant. The development, selection and disclosure of our critical accounting estimates are reviewed with the Audit Committee of the Company's Board of Directors. Actual results could differ from these estimates. For additional information regarding critical accounting policies, refer to “Part II - Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates” and Note 1 of our consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2023 in the Company’s 2023 Form 10-K. There have been no significant changes in the Company’s application of critical accounting policies since December 31, 2023.
Reserve for Credit Losses
A consequence of lending activities is that we may incur credit losses. The amount of such losses will vary depending upon the risk characteristics of the loan lease portfolio as affected by economic conditions such as rising interest rates and the financial performance of borrowers.
The reserve for credit losses consists of the allowance for credit losses (“ACL”) and the allowance for unfunded commitments. As a result of our January 1, 2023 adoption of ASU No. 2016-13, and its related amendments, our methodology for estimating the reserve for credit losses changed significantly from December 31, 2022. The standard replaced the “incurred loss” approach with an “expected loss” approach known as the Current Expected Credit Losses (“CECL”). The CECL approach requires an estimate of the credit losses expected over the life of an exposure (or pool of exposures). It removes the incurred loss approach’s threshold that delayed the recognition of a credit loss until it was “probable” a loss event was “incurred.”
The estimate of expected credit losses under the CECL approach is based on relevant information about past events, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect the collectability of the reported amounts. Historical loss experience is generally the starting point for estimating expected credit losses. We then consider whether the historical loss experience should be adjusted for loan-specific risk characteristics or current conditions at the reporting date that did not exist over the period from which historical experience was used. Finally, we consider forecasts about future economic conditions that are reasonable and supportable. The allowance for unfunded commitments represents the expected credit losses on off-balance sheet commitments such as unfunded commitments to extend credit. This allowance is estimated by loan segment at each balance sheet date under the CECL model using the same methodologies as portfolio loans, taking into consideration the likelihood that funding will occur.
Management’s evaluation of the appropriateness of the reserve for credit losses is often the most critical of accounting estimates for a financial institution. Our determination of the amount of the reserve for credit losses is a critical accounting estimate as it requires significant reliance on the credit risk rating we assign to individual borrowers, the use of estimates and significant judgment as to the amount and timing of expected future cash flows, reliance on historical loss rates on homogenous portfolios, consideration of our quantitative and qualitative evaluation of economic factors, and the reliance on our reasonable and supportable forecasts. The reserve for credit losses attributable to each portfolio segment also includes an amount for inherent risks not reflected in the historical analyses. Relevant factors include, but are not limited
37
to, concentrations of credit risk (geographic, large borrower, and industry), changes in underwriting standards, changes in collateral values, experience and depth of lending staff, trends in delinquencies, and the volume and terms of loans.
See Note 1 and Note 3 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on the reserve and allowance for credit losses.
Overview
MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in the Atlanta metropolitan area. We operate through our wholly-owned banking subsidiary, Metro City Bank, a Georgia state-chartered commercial bank that was founded in 2006. We currently operate 20 full-service branch locations in multi-ethnic communities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia. As of March 31, 2024, we had total assets of $3.65 billion, total loans, including loans held for sale, of $3.19 billion, total deposits of $2.81 billion and total shareholders’ equity of $396.6 million.
We are a full-service commercial bank focused on delivering personalized service in an efficient and reliable manner to the small to medium-sized businesses and individuals in our markets, predominantly Asian-American communities in growing metropolitan markets in the Eastern U.S. and Texas. We offer a suite of loan and deposit products tailored to meet the needs of the businesses and individuals already established in our communities, as well as first generation immigrants who desire to establish and grow their own businesses, purchase a home, or educate their children in the United States. Through our diverse and experienced management team and talented employees, we are able to speak the language of our customers and provide them with services and products in a culturally competent manner.
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Selected Financial Data
The following table sets forth unaudited selected financial data for the most recent five quarters. This data should be read in conjunction with the unaudited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in Item 1 and the information contained in this Item 2.
As of or for the Three Months Ended
September 30,
June 30,
Selected income statement data:
Interest income
50,671
48,709
47,482
Interest expense
24,549
24,555
22,512
26,122
24,154
24,970
782
(381)
(416)
Noninterest income
4,712
2,657
4,691
Noninterest expense
13,915
11,540
11,464
Income tax expense
4,790
4,224
5,505
11,347
11,428
13,108
Per share data:
Basic income per share
0.45
0.52
Diluted income per share
0.44
0.51
Dividends per share
0.20
0.18
Book value per share (at period end)
15.73
15.14
15.24
14.76
14.04
Shares of common stock outstanding
25,241,157
25,279,846
Weighted average diluted shares
25,543,861
25,591,874
25,477,143
Performance ratios:
Return on average assets
1.65
1.29
1.30
1.55
1.87
Return on average equity(1)
15.41
11.71
12.14
14.87
18.09
Dividend payout ratio
34.77
40.36
40.18
28.98
Yield on total loans
6.34
6.11
5.98
5.95
5.85
Yield on average earning assets
6.27
6.14
5.92
5.90
5.77
Cost of average interest bearing liabilities
3.94
3.91
3.97
3.74
3.30
Cost of deposits
3.95
4.05
3.88
3.48
Net interest margin
3.24
3.17
2.94
3.10
Efficiency ratio(2)
37.86
45.13
43.04
38.65
33.38
Asset quality data (at period end):
Net charge-offs/(recoveries) to average loans held for investment
(0.00)
0.04
0.06
Nonperforming assets to gross loans and OREO
0.97
1.22
1.25
0.78
0.64
ACL to nonperforming loans
62.37
49.06
47.61
79.88
101.22
ACL to loans held for investment
0.60
Balance sheet and capital ratios:
Gross loans held for investment to deposits
110.97
115.38
111.77
112.27
114.27
Noninterest bearing deposits to deposits
19.43
18.75
20.58
21.32
21.83
Investment securities to assets
0.82
0.79
0.84
0.87
Common equity to assets
10.87
10.89
10.96
10.74
10.32
Leverage ratio
10.07
10.03
9.72
Common equity tier 1 ratio
17.03
16.69
16.55
Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio
Total risk-based capital ratio
17.91
17.59
Mortgage and SBA loan data:
Mortgage loans serviced for others
443,905
443,072
464,823
487,787
506,012
Mortgage loan production
94,016
128,931
91,891
72,830
43,335
Mortgage loan sales
21,873
SBA loans serviced for others
516,425
508,000
487,827
493,579
485,663
SBA loan production
10,117
27,529
18,212
16,110
26,239
SBA loan sales
24,065
5,169
30,298
36,458
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Banking Industry Developments
During the first half of 2023, the banking industry experienced significant volatility with multiple high-profile bank failures and industry wide concerns related to liquidity, deposit outflows, uninsured deposit concentrations, unrealized securities losses and eroding consumer confidence in the banking system. Despite these negative industry developments, the Company’s liquidity position and balance sheet remains robust. The Company’s total deposits increased by 6.4% from March 31, 2023 to $2.81 billion at March 31, 2024. The Company’s uninsured deposits represented 23.0% of total deposits at March 31, 2024 compared to 26.5% of total deposits at December 31, 2023. The Company also took a number of preemptive actions, which included proactive outreach to clients and actions to maximize its funding sources in response to these developments. Furthermore, the Company’s capital remains strong with common equity Tier 1 and total capital ratios of 16.96% and 17.81%, respectively, as of March 31, 2024.
Results of Operations
We recorded net income of $14.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $15.7 million for the same period in 2023, a decrease of $1.1 million, or 7.0%. This decrease was due to a decrease in noninterest income of $576,000 and an increase in noninterest expense of $1.6 million, offset by an increase in net interest income of $852,000 and a decrease in provision for credit losses of $140,000.
Basic and diluted earnings per common share for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $0.58 and $0.57 compared to $0.63 and $0.62 for the basic and diluted earnings per common share for the same period in 2023.
Interest Income
Interest income totaled $52.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $6.4 million, or 13.9%, from the three months ended March 31, 2023, primarily due to an increase in average loan balances of $131.5 million coupled with a 49 basis points increase in the loan yield. The increase in average loans is due to an increase of $17.5 million in average commercial and industrial loans, an increase of $43.9 million in average commercial real estate loans and an increase of $87.2 million in average residential mortgage loans, offset by a decrease of $17.1 million in construction and development loans. As compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, the yield on average interest-earning assets increased by 50 basis points to 6.27% from 5.77% with the yield on average loans increasing by 49 basis points and the yield on average total investments increasing by 60 basis points.
Interest Expense
Interest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 increased $5.5 million, or 28.1%, to $25.3 million compared to interest expense of $19.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, primarily due to a 49 basis points increase in deposit costs and a 134 basis points increase in borrowing costs coupled with a $215.2 million increase in average interest-bearing deposits. The 49 basis points increase in deposit costs included a 136 basis point increase in the yield on average time deposits which was partially offset by a 38 basis points decrease in average money market deposits. Average time deposits increased by $125.0 million and average money market deposits increased by $98.5 million.
Average borrowings outstanding for the three months ended March 31, 2024 decreased by $59.3 million but had an increase in rate of 134 basis points compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023.
The Company currently has interest rate derivative agreements totaling $850.0 million that are designated as cash flow hedges of our deposit accounts indexed to the Federal Funds Effective rate. The weighted average pay rate for these interest rate derivatives is 2.29%. During the three months ended March 31, 2024, we recorded a credit to interest expense of $4.1 million from the benefit received on these interest rate derivatives compared to a credit to interest expense of $166,000 recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2023. Based on the Federal Funds Effective rate as of March 31, 2024 (5.33%), the Company would estimate to record a credit to interest expense of approximately $19.3 million for the remainder of 2024 from the benefit received on these interest rate derivatives. See Note 8 of our consolidated financial
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statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on these interest rate derivatives
Net Interest Margin
The net interest margin for the three months ended March 31, 2024 decreased by six basis points to 3.24% from 3.30% for the three months ended March 31, 2023, primarily due to a 64 basis point increase in the cost of average interest-bearing liabilities of $2.58 billion, offset by a 50 basis point increase in the yield on average interest-earning assets of $3.36 billion. Average earning assets for the three months ended March 31, 2024 increased by $129.8 million from the same period in 2023, due to a $131.5 million increase in average loans, offset by a $1.8 million decrease in total average investments. Average interest-bearing liabilities for the three months ended March 31, 2024 increased by $155.8 million from the same period in 2023, driven by an increase in average interest-bearing deposits of $215.2 million, offset by a decrease in average borrowings of $59.3 million.
Net interest margin and net interest income are influenced by internal and external factors. Internal factors include balance sheet changes on both volume and mix and pricing decisions, and external factors include changes in market interest rates, competition and the shape of the interest rate yield curve. The decrease in our net interest margin is primarily the result of our increasing deposit costs.
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Average Balances, Interest and Yields
The following tables present, for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, information about: (i) weighted average balances, the total dollar amount of interest income from interest-earning assets and the resultant average yields; (ii) average balances, the total dollar amount of interest expense on interest-bearing liabilities and the resultant average rates; (iii) net interest income; (iv) the interest rate spread; and (v) the net interest margin.
Interest and
Yield /
Balance
Fees
Rate
Earning Assets:
Federal funds sold and other investments(1)
144,934
5.69
145,354
1,805
5.04
31,611
189
2.40
32,952
178
2.19
Total investments
176,545
2,241
5.11
178,306
1,983
4.51
21,970
505
9.24
39,097
523
5.43
716,051
16,108
9.05
672,109
13,979
8.44
64,575
1,574
9.80
47,105
1,030
8.87
2,378,879
31,890
5.39
2,291,699
28,422
5.03
249
64.61
166
68.41
Gross loans(2)
3,181,724
3,050,176
Total earning assets
3,358,269
3,228,482
Noninterest-earning assets
213,802
175,110
3,572,071
3,403,592
Interest-bearing liabilities:
NOW and savings deposits
158,625
885
2.24
166,962
648
1.57
Money market deposits
1,077,469
9,692
3.62
978,954
9,659
4.00
Time deposits
1,001,792
11,528
4.63
876,803
7,069
3.27
Total interest-bearing deposits
2,237,886
2,022,719
Borrowings
343,847
3.71
403,170
2.37
Total interest-bearing liabilities
2,581,733
2,425,889
Noninterest-bearing liabilities:
Noninterest-bearing deposits
522,300
578,978
Other noninterest-bearing liabilities
86,190
46,138
Total noninterest-bearing liabilities
608,490
625,116
Shareholders' equity
381,848
352,587
Net interest spread
2.33
2.47
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Rate/Volume Analysis
Increases and decreases in interest income and interest expense result from changes in average balances (volume) of interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities, as well as changes in average interest rates. The following table sets forth the effects of changing rates and volumes on our net interest income during the period shown. Information is provided with respect to (i) effects on interest income attributable to changes in volume (change in volume multiplied by prior rate) and (ii) effects on interest income attributable to changes in rate (changes in rate multiplied by prior volume). Change applicable to both volumes and rate have been allocated to volume.
Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 Compared to Three Months Ended March 31, 2023
Increase (Decrease) Due to Change in:
Volume
Yield/Rate
Total Change
Earning assets:
200
(45)
256
258
(284)
266
(18)
1,468
2,129
333
544
1,293
2,175
3,468
Consumer and Other
2,697
3,438
6,135
2,699
3,694
6,393
(32)
269
237
1,242
(1,209)
1,185
3,274
4,459
2,395
2,334
4,729
(1,406)
2,218
812
989
4,552
5,541
1,710
(858)
852
Provision for Credit Losses
The provision for credit losses reflects our internal calculation and judgment of the appropriate amount of the allowance for credit losses. The adoption of ASU No. 2016-13, “Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments” or “CECL” has significantly changed the methodology of how we measure credit losses (see Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for more information). We maintain the allowance for credit losses at levels we believe are appropriate to cover our estimate of expected credit losses over the life of loans in the portfolio as of the end of the reporting period. The allowance for credit losses is determined through detailed quarterly analyses of our loan portfolio. The allowance for credit losses is based on our loss experience, changes in the economic environment, reasonable and supportable forecasts, as well as an ongoing assessment of credit quality and environmental factors not reflective in historical loss rates. Additional qualitative factors that are considered in determining the amount of the allowance for credit losses are concentrations of credit risk (geographic, large borrower, and industry), changes in underwriting standards, changes in collateral value, experience and depth of lending staff, trends in delinquencies, and the volume and terms of loans.
We recorded a credit provision of $140,000 during the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to no provision being recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2023. The credit provision recorded during the first three months of 2024 was primarily due the decrease in the general reserves allocated to our residential mortgage loan portfolio as a large amount of residential mortgage loans were moved from loans held for investment to loans held for sale during the
quarter. Our ACL as a percentage of gross loans for the periods ended March 31, 2024, December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2023 was 0.58%, 0.57% and 0.63%, respectively. Our ACL as a percentage of gross loans is relatively lower than our peers due to our high percentage of residential mortgage loans, which tend to have lower allowance for credit loss ratios compared to other commercial or consumer loans due to their low LTVs.
See the section captioned “Allowance for Credit Losses” elsewhere in this document for further analysis of our provision for credit losses.
Noninterest Income
Noninterest income for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $5.6 million, a decrease of $576,000, or 9.4%, compared to $6.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The following table sets forth the major components of our noninterest income for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:
$ Change
% Change
(2)
(0.4)
738
84.4
100.0
325
338.5
(918)
(46.6)
(318)
(17.5)
(623)
(54.9)
(576)
(9.4)
Service charges on deposit accounts decreased $2,000, or 0.4%, to $447,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $449,000 for the same three months during 2023. This decrease was primarily attributable to lower analysis charges, offset by higher overdraft fees and wire transfer fees.
Other service charges, commissions and fees increased $738,000, or 84.4%, to $1.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $874,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023. This increase was mainly attributable to higher processing, underwriting and origination fees earned from our origination of residential mortgage loans as mortgage volume increased during the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. Mortgage loan originations totaled $94.0 million during the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $43.3 million during the same period in 2023.
Total gain on sale of loans was $1.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $2.0 million for the same period of 2023, a decrease of $696,000, or 35.3%.
Gain on sale of residential mortgage loans totaled $222,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 as we sold $21.9 million in residential mortgage loans during the period with an average premium of 1.06%. We recorded no gain on sale of residential mortgage loans during the three months ended March 31, 2023 as no mortgage loans were sold during the period.
Gain on sale of SBA loans totaled $1.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $2.0 million for the same period in 2023. We sold $24.1 million in SBA loans during the three months ended March 31, 2024 with average premiums of 6.72%. We sold $36.5 million in SBA loans during the three months ended March 31, 2023 with average premiums of 6.80%.
Mortgage loan servicing income, net of amortization, increased by $325,000, or 338.5%, to $229,000 during the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to an expense balance of $96,000 for the same period of 2023. The changes in mortgage loan servicing income were primarily due to decreases in mortgage servicing amortization and an increase in capitalized mortgage servicing assets, offset by the decrease in mortgage servicing fees. Included in mortgage loan
servicing income for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $566,000 in mortgage servicing fees compared to $672,000 for the same period in 2023 and capitalized mortgage servicing assets of $136,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $0 for the same period in 2023. These amounts were offset by mortgage loan servicing asset amortization of $427,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to $768,000 during the three months ended March 31, 2023. During the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, we did not record a fair value impairment on our mortgage servicing assets. Our total residential mortgage loan servicing portfolio was $443.9 million at March 31, 2024 compared to $506.0 million at March 31, 2023.
SBA servicing income decreased by $318,000, or 17.5%, to $1.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $1.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. Our total SBA and USDA loan servicing portfolio was $516.4 million as of March 31, 2024 compared to $485.7 million as of March 31, 2023. Our SBA servicing rights are carried at fair value and the inputs used to calculate fair value change from period to period. During the three months ended March 31, 2024, we recorded a $361,000 fair value increase to our SBA servicing rights compared to a $708,000 fair value increase to our SBA servicing rights during the three months ended March 31, 2023.
Other noninterest income decreased by $623,000, or 54.9%, to $511,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $1.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The decrease was mainly due to a gain on sale of foreclosed real estate of $547,000 recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to no gain on sale being recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2024. The largest component of other noninterest income is the income on bank owned life insurance which totaled $535,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $435,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023. Also included in other noninterest income are fair value gains/losses on our equity securities, which totaled $47,000 (loss) and $128,000 (gain) for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Noninterest Expense
Noninterest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $12.4 million compared to $10.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $1.6 million, or 14.4%. The following table sets forth the major components of our noninterest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:
(Dollars in thousands )
Noninterest Expense:
1,004
15.8
140
11.5
6.9
17.8
365
13.0
1,554
14.4
Salaries and employee benefits expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $7.4 million compared to $6.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $1.0 million, or 15.8%. This increase was partially attributable to higher restricted stock expense, as well as higher commissions paid to our loan officers as loan volume increased during the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.
Occupancy and equipment expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $1.4 million compared to $1.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $140,000, or 11.5%. The increase was primarily due to higher maintenance and service expense, rent expense, and depreciation expense.
Data processing expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $294,000 compared to $275,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $19,000, or 6.9%. The increase was consistent with the continued growth of our loans and deposits.
Advertising expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $172,000 compared to $146,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $26,000, or 17.8%. The increase was consistent with the continued growth of our loans and deposits.
Other expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2024 were $3.2 million compared to $2.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, an increase of $365,000, or 13.0%. This increase was partially due to higher FDIC insurance premiums and professional fees, partially offset by lower loan and other real estate owned related expenses. Included in other expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023 were directors’ fees of approximately $163,000 and $137,000, respectively.
Income Tax Expense
Income tax expense for both the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023 was $5.8 million. The Company’s effective tax rates were 28.4% and 27.1% for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Financial Condition
Total assets increased $144.4 million, or 4.1%, to $3.65 billion at March 31, 2024 as compared to $3.50 billion at December 31, 2023. The increase in total assets was primarily attributable to increases in cash and cash equivalents of $114.0 million, loans held for sale of $50.3 million and interest rate derivatives of $6.9 million, partially offset by decreases in loans held for investment of $26.2 million and other assets of $2.1 million.
Our investment securities portfolio made up only 0.78% of our total assets at March 31, 2024 compared to 0.82% at December 31, 2023.
Gross loans held for investment decreased $26.7 million, or 0.8%, to $3.12 billion as of March 31, 2024 as compared to $3.15 billion as of December 31, 2023. Our loan decline during the three months ended March 31, 2024 was comprised of an increase of $4.5 million, or 19.3%, in construction and development loans, an increase of $13.1 million, or 1.8%, in commercial real estate loans, an increase of $2.7 million, or 4.0%, in commercial and industrial loans, a decrease of $46.9 million, or 2.0%, in residential real estate loans and a decrease of $72,000, or 22.6%, in consumer and other loans. Loans held for sale were $72.6 million as of March 31, 2024 compared to $22.3 million as of December 31, 2023.
The following table presents the ending balance of each major category in our loan portfolio held for investment at the dates indicated.
% of Total
0.9
0.7
23.2
22.6
2.2
2.1
73.7
74.6
Gross loans
Less unearned income
Total loans held for investment
SBA and USDA Loan Servicing
As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we serviced $516.4 million and $485.7 million, respectively, in SBA and USDA loans for others. We carried a servicing asset of $7.6 million and $7.3 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. See Note 4 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included
elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on the activity for SBA and USDA loan servicing rights for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
Residential Mortgage Loan Servicing
As of March 31, 2024, we serviced $443.9 million in residential mortgage loans for others compared to $443.1 million as of December 31, 2023. We carried a servicing asset, net of amortization, of $937,000 and $1.3 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. Amortization relating to the mortgage loan servicing asset was $473,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to $768,000 for the same period in 2023. During the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, we did not record a fair value impairment on our mortgage servicing asset. See Note 5 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on the activity for mortgage loans servicing rights for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
Asset Quality
Nonperforming Loans
Asset quality remained relatively strong during the first quarter of 2024 as our nonperforming loans to total loans remained low at 0.92% as of March 31, 2024. Nonperforming loans were $28.8 million at March 31, 2024 compared to $36.9 million at December 31, 2023. The decrease from December 31, 2023 to March 31, 2024 was attributable to a $1.4 million decrease in nonaccrual loans and a $6.7 million decrease in accruing restructured loans. We did not recognize any interest income on nonaccrual loans during the three months ended March 31, 2024 or the year ended December 31, 2023.
The following table sets forth the allocation of our nonperforming assets among our different asset categories as of the dates indicated. Nonperforming loans include nonaccrual loans, loans past due 90 days or more and still accruing interest, and accruing restructured loans. Nonperforming assets consist of nonperforming loans plus OREO. Nonaccrual loans at March 31, 2024 comprised of $469,000 of commercial real estate loans, $1.3 million of commercial and industrial loans and $11.5 million of residential real estate loans. Nonaccrual loans at December 31, 2023 comprised of $548,000 of construction and development loans, $991,000 of commercial real estate loans, $1.3 million of commercial and industrial loans, and $11.9 million of residential real estate loans.
Nonaccrual loans
Past due loans 90 days or more and still accruing
Accruing restructured loans
15,534
22,233
Total nonperforming loans
28,831
36,915
Total nonperforming assets
30,283
38,381
Nonperforming loans to gross loans
0.92
1.17
Nonperforming assets to total assets
0.83
1.10
Allowance for credit losses to nonperforming loans
The allowance for credit losses was $18.0 million at March 31, 2024 compared to $18.1 million at December 31, 2023, a decrease of $130,000, or 0.7%. The decrease was primarily due to the decrease in the general reserves allocated to our residential mortgage loan portfolio as a large amount of residential mortgage loans were moved from loans held for investment to loans held for sale during the three months ended March 31, 2024.
We maintain a reserve for credit losses that consist of two components, the allowance for credit losses and the allowance for unfunded commitments. The allowance for credit losses provides for the risk of credit losses expected in our loan portfolio and is based on loss estimates derived from a comprehensive quarterly evaluation. The evaluation reflects analyses of individual borrowers for impairment coupled with analysis of historical loss experience in various loan pools that have been grouped based on similar risk characteristics, supplemented as necessary by credit judgment that
considers observable trends, conditions, reasonable and supportable forecasts, and other relevant environmental and economic factors. The level of the allowance for credit losses is adjusted by recording an expense or credit through the provision for credit losses. The level of the allowance for unfunded commitments is adjusted by recording an expense or credit in other noninterest expense. The allowance for unfunded commitments was created upon adoption of CECL on January 1, 2023 and had a balance of $310,000 as of March 31, 2024 compared to $239,000 as of March 31, 2023.
Loans that do not share risk characteristics are evaluated on an individual basis. For collateral dependent loans where the Company has determined that foreclosure of the collateral is probable, or where the borrower is experiencing financial difficulty and the Company expects repayment of the loan to be provided substantially through the operation or sale of the collateral, the ACL is measured based on the difference between the fair value of the collateral and the amortized cost basis of the loan as of the measurement date. When repayment is expected to be from the operation of the collateral, expected credit losses are calculated as the amount by which the amortized cost basis of the loan exceeds the present value of expected cash flows from the operation of the collateral. When repayment is expected to be from the sale of the collateral, expected credit losses are calculated as the amount by which the amortized costs basis of the loan exceeds the fair value of the underlying collateral less estimated cost to sell. The ACL may be zero if the fair value of the collateral at the measurement date exceeds the amortized cost basis of the loan.
The impact of utilizing the CECL approach to calculate the allowance for credit losses will be significantly influenced by the composition, characteristics and quality of our loan portfolio, as well as the prevailing economic conditions and forecasts utilized. Material changes to these and other relevant factors may result in greater volatility to the provision for credit losses, and therefore, greater volatility to our reported earnings. See Note 1 and Note 3 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information on the on the allowance for credit losses and the allowance for unfunded commitments.
It is the policy of management to maintain the allowance for credit losses at a level adequate for risks inherent in the loan portfolio. The FDIC and GA DBF also review the allowance for credit losses as an integral part of their examination process. Based on information currently available, management believes that our allowance for credit losses is adequate. However, the loan portfolio can be adversely affected if economic conditions and the real estate market in our market areas were to weaken. The effect of such events, although uncertain at this time, could result in an increase in the level of nonperforming loans and increased credit losses, which could adversely affect our future growth and profitability. No assurance of the ultimate level of credit losses can be given with any certainty.
48
Analysis of the Allowance for Credit Losses. The following table provides an analysis of the allowance for credit losses, provision for credit losses and net charge-offs for the periods presented below:
Balance, beginning of period
CECL adoption (Day 1) impact
Charge-offs:
Total charge-offs
Recoveries:
Total recoveries
Net (recoveries)/charge-offs
(4)
Provision for loan losses
Balance, end of period
Total loans at end of period
3,021,320
Average loans(1)
3,133,384
Net charge-offs to average loans
0.00
Allowance for credit losses to total loans
Management believes the allowance for credit losses is adequate to provide for losses inherent in the loan portfolio as of March 31, 2024.
Total deposits increased $82.9 million, or 3.0%, to $2.81 billion at March 31, 2024 compared to $2.73 billion at December 31, 2023. The increase was due to a $50.2 million increase in time deposits, a $34.7 million increase in noninterest-bearing demand deposits and a $2.6 million increase in interest-bearing demand deposits, offset by a $2.9 million decrease in money market accounts and a $1.6 million decrease in savings accounts. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, 19.4% and 18.7% of total deposits, respectively, were comprised of noninterest-bearing demand accounts and 80.6% and 81.3%, respectively, of interest-bearing deposit accounts.
As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had estimated uninsured deposits of $653.3 million and $730.5 million, respectively. These estimates were derived using the same methodologies and assumptions used for the Bank's regulatory reporting. Uninsured deposits were 23.0% of total deposits at March 31, 2024, compared to 26.5% and 31.9% at December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2023, respectively. As of March 31, 2024, we had $1.22 billion of available borrowing capacity at the Federal Home Loan Bank ($694.9 million), Federal Reserve Discount Window ($480.8 million) and various other financial institutions (fed fund lines totaling $47.5 million).
We had $766.9 million of brokered deposits, or 27.3% of total deposits, at March 31, 2024 compared to $766.3 million, or 28.1% of total deposits, at December 31, 2023. We use brokered deposits, subject to certain limitations and requirements, as a source of funding to support our asset growth and augment the deposits generated from our branch network, which are our principal source of funding. Our level of brokered deposits varies from time to time depending on
competitive interest rate conditions and other factors and tends to increase as a percentage of total deposits when the brokered deposits are less costly than issuing internet certificates of deposit or borrowing from the Federal Home Loan Bank.
We use interest rate swap and cap agreements to hedge our deposit accounts that are indexed to the Federal Funds Effective Rate. These swap agreements are designated as cash flow hedges. As of March 31, 2024, the total amount of deposits tied to the Federal Funds Effective Rate was $936.0 million. See Note 8 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for additional information.
The following table summarizes our average deposit balances and weighted average rates for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023.
Average Rate
Noninterest-bearing demand
Interest-bearing demand deposits
146,892
2.41
149,266
1.74
Savings and money market deposits
328,894
3.90
557,508
3.21
Brokered money market deposits
760,308
3.44
439,142
4.85
2,760,186
3.22
2,601,697
2.71
Borrowed Funds
Other than deposits, we also utilized FHLB advances as a supplementary funding source to finance our operations. The advances from the FHLB are collateralized by residential real estate loans. At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we had available borrowing capacity from the FHLB of $694.9 million and $721.1 million, respectively. At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we had $350.0 million and $325.0 million, respectively, of outstanding advances from the FHLB.
In addition to our advances with the FHLB, we maintain federal funds agreements with our correspondent banks. Our available borrowings under these agreements were $47.5 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. We did not have any advances outstanding under these agreements as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. We also have access to the Federal Reserve’s discount window in the amount of $480.8 million and $446.3 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. No discount window borrowings were outstanding as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. We also maintain relationships in the capital markets with brokers to issue certificates of deposit and money market accounts.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Liquidity
Liquidity refers to the measure of our ability to meet the cash flow requirements of depositors and borrowers, while at the same time meeting our operating, capital and strategic cash flow needs, all at a reasonable cost. We continuously monitor our liquidity position to ensure that assets and liabilities are managed in a manner that will meet all short-term and long-term cash requirements. We manage our liquidity position to meet the daily cash flow needs of customers, while maintaining an appropriate balance between assets and liabilities to meet the return on investment objectives of our shareholders.
Our liquidity position is supported by management of liquid assets and access to alternative sources of funds. Our liquid assets include cash, interest-bearing deposits in correspondent banks, federal funds sold, and fair value of unpledged
investment securities. Other available sources of liquidity include wholesale/brokered deposits, and additional borrowings from correspondent banks, FHLB advances, and the Federal Reserve discount window.
Our short-term and long-term liquidity requirements are primarily met through cash flow from operations, redeployment of prepaying and maturing balances in our loan and investment portfolios, and increases in customer deposits. Other alternative sources of funds will supplement these primary sources to the extent necessary to meet additional liquidity requirements on either a short-term or long-term basis.
As part of our liquidity management strategy, we open federal funds lines with our correspondent banks. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we had $47.5 million of unsecured federal funds lines with no amounts advanced. In addition, the Company had Federal Reserve Discount Window funds available of approximately $480.8 million and $446.3 million at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. The FRB discount window line is collateralized by a pool of construction and development, commercial real estate and commercial and industrial loans with carrying balances totaling $620.9 million as of March 31, 2024, as well as all of the Company’s municipal and mortgage backed securities. There were no outstanding borrowings on this line as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023.
At March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we had $350.0 million and $325.0 million, respectively, of outstanding advances from the FHLB. Based on the values of loans pledged as collateral, we had $694.9 million and $721.1 million of additional borrowing availability with the FHLB as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. We also maintain relationships in the capital markets with brokers to issue certificates of deposit and money market accounts.
Capital Requirements
The Company and the Bank are required under federal law to maintain certain minimum capital levels based on ratios of capital to total assets and capital to risk-weighted assets. The required capital ratios are minimums, and the federal banking agencies may determine that a banking organization, based on its size, complexity or risk profile, must maintain a higher level of capital in order to operate in a safe and sound manner. Risks such as concentration of credit risks and the risk arising from non-traditional activities, as well as the institution’s exposure to a decline in the economic value of its capital due to changes in interest rates, and an institution’s ability to manage those risks are important factors that are to be taken into account by the federal banking agencies in assessing an institution’s overall capital adequacy.
The table below summarizes the capital requirements applicable to the Company and the Bank in order to be considered “well-capitalized” from a regulatory perspective, as well as the Company’s and the Bank’s capital ratios as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. The Bank exceeded all regulatory capital requirements and was considered to be “well-capitalized” as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. As of December 31, 2023, the FDIC categorized the Bank as well-capitalized under the prompt corrective action framework. There have been no conditions or events since December 31, 2023 that management believes would change this classification. While the Company believes that it has sufficient capital to withstand an extended economic recession, its reported and regulatory capital ratios could be adversely impacted in future periods.
51
Regulatory
Capital Ratio
Requirements
Minimum
including
Requirement
fully phased-
for "Well
in Capital
Capitalized"
Conservation
Depository
Buffer
Institution
Total capital (to risk-weighted assets)
10.50
10.00
Tier 1 capital (to risk-weighted assets)
8.50
8.00
CETI capital (to risk-weighted assets)
7.00
6.50
Tier 1 capital (to average assets)
5.00
Dividends
On April 17, 2024, the Company declared a cash dividend of $0.20 per share, payable on May 10, 2024, to common shareholders of record as of May 1, 2024. Any future determination to pay dividends to holders of our common stock will depend on our results of operations, financial condition, capital requirements, banking regulations, contractual restrictions and any other factors that our board of directors may deem relevant.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We are a party to financial instruments with off-balance sheet risk in the normal course of business to meet the financing needs of our customers. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. Those instruments involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit and interest rate risk in excess of the amount recognized in our consolidated balance sheet. The contractual or notional amounts of those instruments reflect the extent of involvement we have in particular classes of financial instruments.
Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to a customer as long as there is no violation of any condition established in the contract. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amount does not necessarily represent future cash requirements. We evaluate each customer’s creditworthiness on a case-by-case basis. The amount of collateral obtained, if we deem collateral is necessary upon extension of credit, is based on management’s credit evaluation of the counterparty.
Standby letters of credit are conditional commitments issued by us to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. They are intended to be disbursed, subject to certain condition, upon request of the borrower.
See Note 9 of our consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2024, included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, for more information regarding our off-balance sheet arrangements as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023.
52
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.
Market Risk
Market risk represents the risk of loss due to changes in market values of assets and liabilities. We incur market risk in the normal course of business through exposures to market interest rates, equity prices, and credit spreads. We have identified interest rate risk as our primary source of market risk.
Interest Rate Risk
Interest rate risk is the risk to earnings and value arising from changes in market interest rates. Interest rate risk arises from timing differences in the repricings and maturities of interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities (repricing risk), changes in the expected maturities of assets and liabilities arising from embedded options, such as borrowers’ ability to prepay home mortgage loans at any time and depositors’ ability to redeem certificates of deposit before maturity (option risk), changes in the shape of the yield curve where interest rates increase or decrease in a nonparallel fashion (yield curve risk), and changes in spread relationships between different yield curves, such as U.S. Treasuries and Federal funds effective (basis risk).
Our board of directors establishes broad policy limits with respect to interest rate risk. As part of this policy, the asset liability committee, or ALCO, establishes specific operating guidelines within the parameters of the board of directors’ policies. In general, the ALCO focuses on ensuring a stable and steadily increasing flow of net interest income through managing the size and mix of the balance sheet. The management of interest rate risk is an active process which encompasses monitoring loan and deposit flows complemented by investment and funding activities. Effective management of interest rate risk begins with understanding the dynamic characteristics of assets and liabilities and determining the appropriate interest rate risk posture given business forecasts, management objectives, market expectations, and policy constraints.
An asset sensitive position refers to a balance sheet position in which an increase in short-term interest rates is expected to generate higher net interest income, as rates earned on our interest-earning assets would reprice upward more quickly than rates paid on our interest-bearing liabilities, thus expanding our net interest margin. Conversely, a liability sensitive position refers to a balance sheet position in which an increase in short-term interest rates is expected to generate lower net interest income, as rates paid on our interest-bearing liabilities would reprice upward more quickly than rates earned on our interest-earning assets, thus compressing our net interest margin.
Interest rate risk measurement is calculated and reported to the ALCO at least quarterly. The information reported includes period-end results and identifies any policy limits exceeded, along with an assessment of the policy limit breach and the action plan and timeline for resolution, mitigation, or assumption of the risk.
Evaluation of Interest Rate Risk
We use income simulations, an analysis of core funding utilization, and economic value of equity (EVE) simulations as our primary tools in measuring and managing interest rate risk. These tools are utilized to quantify the potential earnings impact of changing interest rates over a two year simulation horizon (income simulations) as well as identify expected earnings trends given longer term rate cycles (long term simulations, core funding utilizations, and EVE simulation). A standard gap report and funding matrix will also be utilized to provide supporting detailed information on the expected timing of cashflow and repricing opportunities.
There are an infinite number of potential interest rate scenarios, each of which can be accompanied by differing economic/political/regulatory climates; can generate multiple differing behavior patterns by markets, borrowers, depositors, etc.; and can last for varying degrees of time. Therefore, by definition, interest rate risk sensitivity cannot be predicted with certainty. Accordingly, the Bank’s interest rate risk measurement philosophy focuses on maintaining an appropriate balance between theoretical and practical scenarios; especially given the primary objective of the Bank’s overall asset/liability management process is to facilitate meaningful strategy development and implementation.
Therefore, we model a set of interest rate scenarios capturing the financial effects of a range of plausible rate scenarios, the collective impact of which will enable the Bank to clearly understand the nature and extent of its sensitivity to interest rate changes. Doing so necessitates an assessment of rate changes over varying time horizons and of varying/sufficient degrees such that the impact of embedded options within the balance sheet are sufficiently examined.
We use a net interest income simulation model to measure and evaluate potential changes in our net interest income. We run three standard and plausible simulations comparing current or flat rates with a +/- 200 basis point ramp in rates over 12 months. These rate scenarios are considered appropriate as we believe they represent a more realistic range of rate movements that could occur in the near to medium term. This analysis also provides the foundation for historical tracking of interest rate risk. The impact of interest rate derivatives, such as interest rate swaps and caps, is included in the model.
Potential changes to our net interest income in hypothetical rising and declining rate scenarios calculated as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 are presented in the following table:
Net Interest Income Sensitivity
12 Month Projection
24 Month Projection
(Ramp in basis points)
+200
-200
(0.30)
(1.50)
(0.10)
2.80
(0.90)
1.50
7.80
We also model the impact of rate changes on our Economic Value of Equity, or EVE. We base the modeling of EVE based on interest rate shocks as shocks are considered more appropriate for EVE, which accelerates future interest rate risk into current capital via a present value calculation of all future cashflows from the bank’s existing inventory of assets and liabilities. Our simulation model incorporates interest rate shocks of +/- 100, 200, and 300 basis points. The results of the model are presented in the table below:
Economic Value of Equity Sensitivity
(Shock in basis points)
+300
+100
-100
-300
(16.80)
(11.30)
(5.60)
7.20
14.90
20.80
(22.20)
(15.00)
(7.50)
9.40
18.60
26.10
Our simulation model incorporates various assumptions, which we believe are reasonable but which may have a significant impact on results such as: (i) the timing of changes in interest rates; (ii) shifts or rotations in the yield curve; (iii) re-pricing characteristics for market-rate-sensitive instruments; (iv) varying loan prepayment speeds for different interest rate scenarios; and (v) the overall growth and mix of assets and liabilities. Because of limitations inherent in any approach used to measure interest rate risk, simulation results are not intended as a forecast of the actual effect of a change in market interest rates on our results but rather as a means to better plan and execute appropriate asset-liability management strategies and manage our interest rate risk.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
The Company’s management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) as of March 31, 2024. The Company’s disclosure controls and procedures are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Based on this evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of March 31, 2024.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
During the quarter ended March 31, 2024, there was no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting identified in connection with the evaluation required by paragraph (d) of Rules 13a-15 or 15d-15 of the Exchange Act that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company is continually monitoring and assessing changes in processes and activities to determine any potential impact on the design and operating effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting.
PART II – OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1. Legal Proceedings
We are a party to various legal proceedings such as claims and lawsuits arising in the course of our normal business activities. Although the ultimate outcome of all claims and lawsuits outstanding as of March 31, 2024 cannot be ascertained at this time, it is the opinion of management that these matters, when resolved, will not have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
In addition to the other information set forth in this Quarterly Report, you should carefully consider the factors discussed in “Part I – Item 1A – Risk Factors” of the Company’s 2023 Form 10-K, which could materially affect its business, financial position, results of operations, cash flows, or future results. Please be aware that these risks may change over time and other risks may prove to be important in the future. New risks may emerge at any time, and we cannot predict such risks or estimate the extent to which they may affect our business, financial condition or results of operations, or the trading price of our securities.
There are no material changes during the period covered by this Report to the risk factors previously disclosed in the Company’s 2023 Form 10-K.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities, Use of Proceeds, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
On September 5, 2023, the Company announced that the Board of Directors of the Company approved the adoption of a share repurchase program authorizing the Company to repurchase up to 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s outstanding shares of common stock. The share repurchase program began on September 6, 2023 and will end on September 30, 2024. The repurchases are made in compliance with all Securities and Exchange Commission rules, including Rule 10b-18, and other legal requirements and may be made in part under Rule 10b5-1 plans, which permits stock repurchases when the Company might otherwise be precluded from doing so. Repurchases can be made from time-to-time in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions depending on market and/or other conditions. The repurchase program may be modified, suspended or discontinued at any time.
We did not repurchase any of our common shares during the three months ended March 31, 2024.
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities
Not applicable.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable
Item 5. Other Information
During the first quarter of 2024, none of our other executive officers or directors adopted Rule 10b5-1 trading plans and none of our directors or executive officers terminated a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan or adopted or terminated a non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement (as defined in Item 408(c) of Regulation S-K).
Item 6. Exhibits
Exhibit No.
Description of Exhibit
3.1
Restated Articles of Incorporation of MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed September 4, 2019 (File No. 333-233625)
3.2
Amended and Restated Bylaws of MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed September 4, 2019 (File No. 333-233625)
31.1
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act, as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
31.2
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act, as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.1
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.2
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101.INS
Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document
101.SCH
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
101.CAL
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
101.DEF
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
101.LAB
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase
101.PRE
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document
104
Cover Page Interactive Data File - the cover page has been formatted in Inline XBRL and contained within the Inline XBRL Instance Document in Exhibit 101
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.
Date: May 7, 2024
By:
/s/ Nack Y. Paek
Nack Y. Paek
Chief Executive Officer
/s/ Lucas Stewart
Lucas Stewart
Chief Financial Officer