Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. SMBC

Poplar Bluff, Missouri, Jan. 25, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. (“Company”) (NASDAQ: SMBC), the parent corporation of Southern Bank (“Bank”), today announced preliminary net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2021 of $12.0 million, an increase of $4.3 million, or 56.1%, as compared to the same period of the prior fiscal year. The increase was attributable to increases in net interest income and noninterest income, partially offset by increases in provision for income taxes, noninterest expense, and provision for credit losses. Preliminary net income was $1.32 per fully diluted common share for the second quarter of fiscal 2021, an increase of $.48 as compared to the $.84 per fully diluted common share reported for the same period of the prior fiscal year.

Highlights for the second quarter of fiscal 2021:

• Annualized return on average assets was 1.87%, while annualized return on average common equity was 18.3%, as compared to 1.36% and 12.6%, respectively, in the same quarter a year ago, and 1.57% and 15.6%, respectively, in the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter.
   
• Earnings per common share (diluted) were $1.32, up $.48, or 57.1%, as compared to the same quarter a year ago, and up $.23, or 21.1%, from the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter.
   
• Provision for credit losses was $612,000, an increase of $224,000, or 57.7%, as compared to the same period of the prior year, and down $162,000, or 20.9%, as compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter. Nonperforming assets were $11.1 million, or 0.42% of total assets, at December 31, 2020, as compared to $11.3 million, or 0.44% of total assets, at September 30, 2020, and $14.1 million, or 0.61% of total assets, at December 31, 2019, one year prior.
   
• Net loans decreased $29.1 million during the second quarter, as balances of SBA Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans declined by $38.2 million, as forgiveness processing began in earnest.
   
• Deposit balances increased $97.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2021. Typically, the second quarter of the fiscal year is the strongest for the Company’s deposit growth, most notably in nonmaturity accounts. Deposits continued to migrate away from certificates of deposit and to nonmaturity accounts.
   
• Net interest margin for the second quarter of fiscal 2021 was 3.92%, up from the 3.70% reported for the year ago period, and up from the 3.73% figure reported for the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter. Net interest income was increased significantly by accelerated accretion of deferred origination fees on PPP loans as those loans were repaid through SBA forgiveness. Discount accretion on acquired loan portfolios was modestly higher in the current quarter as compared to the linked quarter, and modestly lower as compared to the year ago period.
   
• Noninterest income was up 55.7% for the second quarter of fiscal 2021, as compared to the year ago period, and was up 15.8% as compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter. Nonrecurring benefits realized on bank-owned life insurance during the quarter contributed significantly to the increase, and the Company continued to originate a substantial volume of mortgage loans for sale into the secondary market.
   
• Noninterest expense was up 3.1% for the second quarter of fiscal 2021, as compared to the year ago period, and was down 0.5% from the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the linked quarter.  

Dividend Declared:

The Board of Directors, on January 19, 2021, declared a quarterly cash dividend on common stock of $0.16, payable February 26, 2021, to stockholders of record at the close of business on February 12, 2021, marking the 107^th consecutive quarterly dividend since the inception of the Company, and representing an increase of 6.7% over the quarterly dividend paid previously. The Board of Directors and management believe the payment of a quarterly cash dividend enhances stockholder value and demonstrates our commitment to and confidence in our future prospects.

Conference Call:

The Company will host a conference call to review the information provided in this press release on Tuesday, January 26, 2021, at 3:30 p.m., central time. The call will be available live to interested parties by calling 1-888-339-0709 in the United States (Canada: 1-855-669-9657, international: 1-412-902-4189). Participants should ask to be joined into the Southern Missouri Bancorp (SMBC) call. Telephone playback will be available beginning one hour following the conclusion of the call through February 8, 2021. The playback may be accessed by dialing 1-877-344-7529 (Canada: 1-855-669-9658, international: 1-412-317-0088), and using the conference passcode 10151898.

Balance Sheet Summary:

The Company’s balance sheet grew modestly from June 30, 2020, with total assets of $2.6 billion at December 31, 2020, reflecting an increase of $80.8 million, or 3.2%. Growth primarily reflected increases in cash and cash equivalents and available-for-sale (“AFS”) securities, partially offset by a decrease in loans receivable.

Cash equivalents and time deposits were a combined $150.5 million at December 31, 2020, an increase of $95.3 million, or 175.5%, as compared to June 30, 2020, increasing primarily as a result of rapid deposit growth and loan repayments. AFS securities were $181.1 million at December 31, 2020, an increase of $4.6 million, or 2.6%, as compared to June 30, 2020.

Loans, net of the allowance for credit losses (ACL), were $2.1 billion at December 31, 2020, a decrease of $20.5 million, or 1.0%, as compared to June 30, 2020. Gross loans decreased by $10.2 million, or 0.5%, during the first six months of the fiscal year, while the ACL at December 31, 2020, reflected an increase of $10.3 million, as compared to the balance of our allowance for loan and lease losses (ALLL) at June 30, 2020. The Company adopted ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments – Credit Losses, also known as the current expected credit loss (“CECL”) standard, effective as of July 1, 2020, the beginning of our 2021 fiscal year. Adoption resulted in a $9.3 million increase in the ACL, relative to the ALLL as of June 30, 2020, while provisioning in excess of net charge offs during the first six months of fiscal 2021 increased the ACL by an additional $1.0 million, as compared to July 1, 2020. The decrease in loan balances in the portfolio was primarily attributable to commercial loans, partially offset by increases in commercial real estate loans, residential real estate loans, and drawn construction loan balances. Commercial loan balances decreased primarily as a result of forgiveness of PPP loans, which declined by $36.8 million in the fiscal year to date, and by $38.2 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2020, to stand at $95.5 million. Residential real estate loans increased primarily due to growth in 1- to 4-family residential lending, and commercial real estate loans increased primarily due to loans secured by nonresidential owner-occupied property. Management expects to continue to receive significant PPP forgiveness payments in the quarter ended March 31, 2021, although these will be somewhat offset by anticipated funding of “second draw” PPP loans under the program re-opened by the SBA in January 2021. Loans anticipated to fund in the next 90 days stood at $85.1 million at December 31, 2020, as compared to $122.7 million at September 30, 2020, and $72.7 million at December 31, 2019. The pipeline figure at December 31, 2020, did not include second draw PPP loans.

Nonperforming loans were $8.3 million, or 0.39% of gross loans, at December 31, 2020, as compared to $8.7 million, or 0.40% of gross loans at June 30, 2020, and $10.4 million, or 0.54% of gross loans at December 31, 2019. Nonperforming assets were $11.1 million, or 0.42% of total assets, at December 31, 2020, as compared to $11.2 million, or 0.44% of total assets, at June 30, 2020, and $14.1 million, or 0.61% of total assets, at December 31, 2019. The decrease in nonperforming loans over the previous twelve months was attributed primarily to the resolution of certain nonperforming loans acquired in the November 2018 acquisition of Gideon Bancshares and its subsidiary, First Commercial Bank (the “Gideon Acquisition”).

Our ACL at December 31, 2020, totaled $35.5 million, representing 1.64% of gross loans and 425.8% of nonperforming loans, as compared to an ALLL of $25.1 million, representing 1.16% of gross loans and 290.4% of nonperforming loans at June 30, 2020, and an ALLL of $20.8 million, or 1.07% of gross loans and 200.0% of nonperforming loans, at December 31, 2019. The ACL at December 31, 2020, also represented 1.72% of gross loans excluding PPP loans. The Company has estimated its credit losses as of December 31, 2020, under ASC 320-20, and management believes the allowance for credit losses as of that date is adequate based on that estimate; however, there remains significant uncertainty regarding the possible length of the COVID-19 pandemic and the aggregate impact that it will have on global and regional economies, including uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of recent efforts by the U.S. government and Federal Reserve to respond to the pandemic and its economic impact. Management considered the impact of the pandemic on its consumer and business borrowers, particularly those business borrowers most affected by efforts to contain the pandemic, including our borrowers in the retail and multi-tenant retail industry, restaurants, and hotels.

Provisions of the CARES Act and subsequent legislation allow financial institutions the option to temporarily suspend certain requirements under U.S. GAAP related to troubled debt restructurings (TDRs) for certain loans that were otherwise current and performing prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but for which borrowers experienced or expected difficulties due to the impact of the pandemic. Initially, deferrals under this program were generally granted for three-month periods, while interest-only modifications were generally for six-month periods. Some borrowers were granted additional periods of deferral or interest-only modifications. The Company did not account for these loans as TDRs. As of December 31, 2020, loans for which COVID-related payment deferrals and interest-only payment modifications remained in place included approximately 17 loans with balances totaling $40.3 million, as compared to approximately 900 loans with balances totaling $380.2 million with such deferrals or modifications in place at June 30, 2020. Details by loan type are included in the table at the conclusion of this document. For borrowers whose payment term have not returned to the original terms under their loan agreement as of December 31, 2020, the Company has generally classified the credit as a “watch” status credit. Loans remaining under a COVID-related payment deferral or interest-only modification which have been placed on watch status total $38.7 million. While management considers progress made by our borrowers in responding to the pandemic to be relatively strong, and the performance of our loan portfolio to be encouraging to date, we cannot predict with certainty the difficulties to be faced in coming months. Communities where our borrowers operate may experience increases in COVID-19 cases and reductions in business activity or employee attendance, and borrowers could be required by local authorities to restrict activity.

Total liabilities were $2.4 billion at December 31, 2020, an increase of $71.5 million, or 3.1%, as compared to June 30, 2020.

Deposits were $2.3 billion at December 31, 2020, an increase of $80.2 million, or 3.7%, as compared to June 30, 2020. This increase primarily reflected an increase in interest-bearing transaction accounts, noninterest-bearing transaction accounts, savings accounts, and money market deposits accounts, partially offset by a decrease in time deposits. The increase included a $14.8 million increase in public unit funds, and was net of a $7.3 million decrease in brokered deposits. Public unit balances were $320.0 million at December 31, 2020, while brokered time deposits totaled $16.0 million, and brokered money market deposits were $20.0 million. Depositors continue to hold unusually high balances in the uncertain environment. The average loan-to-deposit ratio for the second quarter of fiscal 2021 was 98.5%, as compared to 100.4% for the same period of the prior fiscal year.

FHLB advances were $63.3 million at December 31, 2020, a decrease of $6.7 million, or 9.6%, as compared to June 30, 2020, as the Company’s deposit inflows outpaced loan demand or desired investment portfolio growth. The Company has continued to monitor the availability of the Federal Reserve’s PPP Lending Facility (PPPLF), but has not utilized it to date, given our improved liquidity position and the lack of attractive alternative investment options.

The Company’s stockholders’ equity was $267.7 million at December 31, 2020, an increase of $9.3 million, or 3.2%, as compared to June 30, 2020. The increase was attributable primarily to earnings retained after cash dividends paid, partially offset by the one-time negative adjustment to retained earnings resulting from the adoption of the CECL standard and repurchases of the Company’s common stock. Since re-starting the repurchase program in October 2020, the Company repurchased 90,793 common shares for $2.6 million through December 31, 2020, at an average price of $29.06.

Quarterly Income Statement Summary:

The Company’s net interest income for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was $23.5 million, an increase of $4.1 million, or 21.4%, as compared to the same period of the prior fiscal year. The increase was attributable to a 14.8% increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets, combined with an increase in net interest margin to 3.92% in the current three-month period, from 3.70% in the same period a year ago. As a material amount of PPP loans were forgiven and therefore repaid ahead of their scheduled maturity, the Company recognized accelerated accretion of interest income from deferred origination fees on these loans. In the current quarter, this component of interest income totaled $968,000, adding 16 basis points to the net interest margin, with no comparable item in the year ago period.

Loan discount accretion and deposit premium amortization related to the Company’s August 2014 acquisition of Peoples Bank of the Ozarks, the June 2017 acquisition of Capaha Bank, the February 2018 acquisition of Southern Missouri Bank of Marshfield, the Gideon Acquisition, and the May 2020 acquisition of Central Federal Savings & Loan Association of Rolla (the Central Federal Acquisition), resulted in $478,000 in net interest income for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, as compared to $525,000 in net interest income for the same period a year ago. The Company generally expects this component of net interest income will continue to decline over time, although volatility may occur to the extent we have periodic resolutions of specific loans. Combined, these components of net interest income contributed eight basis points to net interest margin in the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, as compared to a contribution of 10 basis points in the same period of the prior fiscal year, and as compared to the six basis point contribution in the linked quarter, ended September 30, 2020, when net interest margin was 3.73%. Additionally, in the year-ago period, the Company recognized an additional $194,000 in interest income as a result of the resolution of a limited number of nonperforming loans, with no material contribution from similar resolutions in the current or linked period. This recognition of interest income in the year-ago period contributed four basis points to net interest margin.

The provision for credit losses for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was $612,000, as compared to $388,000 in the same period of the prior fiscal year. The limited increase as compared to the same quarter a year ago was attributable primarily to continued uncertainty regarding the economic environment resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the potential impact on the Company’s borrowers, partially offset by relatively consistent levels of net charge offs, adversely classified credits, and nonperforming loans. The Company assesses that the outlook is little changed as compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2020. As a percentage of average loans outstanding, the provision for credit losses in the current three-month period represented a charge of 0.11% (annualized), while the Company recorded net charge offs during the period of 0.04% (annualized). During the same period of the prior fiscal year, the provision represented a charge of 0.08% (annualized), while the Company recorded net charge offs of 0.06% (annualized).

The Company’s noninterest income for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was $5.7 million, an increase of $2.0 million, or 55.7%, as compared to the same period of the prior fiscal year. In the current period, increases in gains realized on the sale of residential real estate loans originated for that purpose, earnings on bank-owned life insurance, loan servicing income, and bank card interchange income were partially offset by decreases in deposit account service charges. Earnings on bank-owned life insurance were increased by a non-recurring benefit of $696,000. Gains realized on the sale of residential real estate loans originated for that purpose increased as origination of these loans more than quadrupled as compared to the year ago period, and also increased from the linked quarter, while pricing modestly improved. Our portfolio of serviced loans has increased notably in recent quarters, up 16.2% during the quarter ended December 31, 2020, as servicing income increases through fees received and the recognition of mortgage servicing rights at origination. Bank card interchange income increased as a result of a 10% increase in the number of bank card transactions and a 17% increase in bank card dollar volume, as compared to the same quarter a year ago.

Noninterest expense for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was $13.4 million, an increase of $410,000, or 3.1%, as compared to the same period of the prior fiscal year. The increase was attributable primarily to increases in compensation and benefits, deposit insurance premiums, data processing expenses, and occupancy expenses, partially offset by reductions in amortization of core deposit intangibles and other expenses. Other expenses declined primarily due to inclusion in the year ago period of a $327,000 loss on the disposal of two bank facilities that had been acquired in the Gideon Acquisition, as well as due to reduced employee travel expenses and customer entertainment. The increase in compensation and benefits as compared to the prior year primarily reflected standard increases in compensation and an increase in employee headcount over the prior year, due in part to the Central Federal Acquisition, as well as a de novo branch opened in July 2020. Deposit insurance premiums reflected a return to a normalized level of premiums after the Company benefited from one-time assessment credits for much of the prior fiscal year. Data processing expenses increased primarily due to licensing of updated productivity, mobility, and security software. Occupancy expenses increased in part due to additional locations, as well as replacement of some ATMs with ITMs with video teller capability. The efficiency ratio for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was 45.9%, as compared to 56.5% in the same period of the prior fiscal year, with the improvement attributable primarily to the current period’s increases in net interest income and noninterest income, while expense growth was contained.

The income tax provision for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020, was $3.2 million, an increase of 64.1% as compared to the same period of the prior fiscal year, as higher pre-tax income combined with an increase in the effective tax rate, to 20.7%, as compared to 19.9% in the same period a year ago. The higher effective tax rate was attributable primarily to the significant increase in pre-tax income, without corresponding increases in tax-advantaged investments.

Forward-Looking Information:

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements, including: potential adverse impacts to the economic conditions in the Company’s local market areas, other markets where the Company has lending relationships, or other aspects of the Company’s business operations or financial markets, generally, resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and any governmental or societal responses thereto; expected cost savings, synergies and other benefits from our merger and acquisition activities might not be realized to the extent anticipated, within the anticipated time frames, or at all, and costs or difficulties relating to integration matters, including but not limited to customer and employee retention, might be greater than expected; the strength of the United States economy in general and the strength of the local economies in which we conduct operations; fluctuations in interest rates and in real estate values; monetary and fiscal policies of the FRB and the U.S. Government and other governmental initiatives affecting the financial services industry; the risks of lending and investing activities, including changes in the level and direction of loan delinquencies and write-offs and changes in estimates of the adequacy of the allowance for credit losses; our ability to access cost-effective funding; the timely development of and acceptance of our new products and services and the perceived overall value of these products and services by users, including the features, pricing and quality compared to competitors' products and services; fluctuations in real estate values and both residential and commercial real estate markets, as well as agricultural business conditions; demand for loans and deposits; legislative or regulatory changes that adversely affect our business; changes in accounting principles, policies, or guidelines; results of regulatory examinations, including the possibility that a regulator may, among other things, require an increase in our reserve for loan losses or write-down of assets; the impact of technological changes; and our success at managing the risks involved in the foregoing. Any forward-looking statements are based upon management’s beliefs and assumptions at the time they are made. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those contained in such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking statements discussed might not occur, and you should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements.

CONTACT: Matt Funke
573-778-1800