Chemung Financial Corporation Reports Annual and Fourth Quarter 2016 Net Income of $10.0 Million, or $2.11 per Share, and $3.0 Million, or $0.62 per Share

ELMIRA, N.Y., Jan. 26, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Chemung Financial Corporation (the “Corporation”) (Nasdaq:CHMG), the parent company of Chemung Canal Trust Company (the “Bank”), today reported net income of $10.0 million, or $2.11 per share, for the full year of 2016 compared to $9.4 million, or $2.00 per share, for the full year of 2015.  Net income for the fourth quarter of 2016 of $3.0 million, or $0.62 per share, compared to $2.1 million, or $0.45 per share, for the fourth quarter of 2015.

Anders M. Tomson, Chemung Financial Corporation CEO, stated:

“2016 was a strong year for our institution.  The combination of organic growth and cost saving measures contributed to our strong growth in earnings of over six percent year-over-year.  I am looking forward to my first year as CEO of Chemung Financial Corporation and continuing our focus on providing high quality services to our customers, engaging the communities we serve, and creating value for our shareholders.”

Fourth Quarter Highlights¹ 

• Loans, net of deferred fees, increased $31.7 million, or 2.7%
  
• Commercial loans increased $45.5 million, or 6.5%
  
• Deposits increased $56.0 million, or 4.0%
  
• Net interest income increased $0.3 million, or 2.6%
  
• Effective tax rate decreased from 32.1% to 30.1%
  
• Dividends declared during the quarter were $0.26
  

A more detailed summary of financial performance follows.

¹ Balance sheet comparisons are calculated for December 31, 2016 versus December 31, 2015.   Income statement comparisons are calculated for the fourth quarter of 2016 versus prior-year fourth quarter.

YTD 2016 vs YTD 2015

Net Interest Income:

Net interest income for the year ended December 31, 2016 totaled $52.3 million compared with $50.6 million for the preceding year, an increase of $1.7 million, or 3.3%.  The increase was due primarily to interest income from the loan portfolio, as the year-to-date average loan balance increased $52.6 million when compared to the preceding year.  Fully taxable equivalent net interest margin was 3.37%, compared with 3.46% for the preceding year.  The decline in net interest margin was a result of the commercial loan portfolio repricing to current market rates.  The yield on interest-earning assets decreased by ten basis points, while the cost of interest-bearing liabilities remained flat.  The decline in the yield of interest-earning assets can be mostly attributed to declines of 23 basis points in the yield of commercial loans and 16 basis points in the yield of mortgage loans, due to new production at lower competitive rates, offset by a 33 basis point increase in consumer loans, due to the indirect loan portfolio and increasing the portfolio toward higher yielding used car loans. Average interest-earning assets increased $94.0 million compared to the prior year, primarily in commercial loans.

Non-Interest Income:

Non-interest income for the year ended December 31, 2016 was $21.1 million compared with $20.4 million for the preceding year, an increase of $0.7 million, or 3.4%.  The increase was primarily due to increases of $0.2 million in service charges on deposit accounts, $0.7 million in interchange revenue from debit card transactions, and $0.6 million in net gains on security transactions, offset by decreases of $0.2 million in WMG fee income and $0.6 million in other non-interest income. The increase in service charges on deposit accounts can be attributed to an increase in volume. The increase in interchange revenue from debit card transactions can be mostly attributed to the recognition of an incremental volume bonus related to the rebranding of the Bank’s credit cards in the fourth quarter of 2015. The net gain on security transactions can be attributed to the sale of $14.5 million in U.S. Treasuries and $25.0 million in obligations of U.S. Government sponsored enterprises. The decrease in WMG fee income can be attributed to a decline in assets under management or administration.  The decrease in other non-interest income can be attributed to a decline in CFS Group, Inc. fee income and rental income from other real estate owned properties, which were sold in 2016.

Non-Interest Expense:

Non-interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2016 was $56.6 million compared with $55.4 million for the preceding year, an increase of $1.2 million, or 2.1%.  The increase was due primarily to increases of $0.2 million in pension and other employee benefits, $0.9 million in professional services, and $1.2 million in other non-interest expenses, offset by decreases of $0.3 million in salaries and wages, $0.2 million in net occupancy expenses, $0.2 million in amortization of intangible assets, and $0.6 million in other real estate owned expenses. The increase in pension and other employee benefits can be attributed to an increase in health insurance costs, offset by a $0.3 million curtailment gain related to the amendment of the defined benefit health care plan during the fourth quarter.  Please refer to the September 30, 2016 Form 10-Q (filed November 2, 2016) and related earnings release (filed on October 20, 2016) for further information about the amendments to the defined benefit plan and pension plan.  The increase in professional services includes expenses incurred related to the feasibility and implementation of Chemung Risk Management, Inc., a captive insurance subsidiary of the Corporation, and legal costs associated with the appeal of the Fane v. Chemung Canal Trust Company decision. The increase in other non-interest expenses can be attributed to the establishment of a $1.2 million legal reserve associated with the Fane v. Chemung Canal Trust Company case.  Please refer to the September 30, 2016 Form 10-Q (filed November 2, 2016) and the June 30, 2016 earnings release (filed on July 29, 2016) for further information about the case.  The decrease in salaries and wages can be attributed to a reduction in full time equivalents.  The decrease in net occupancy expenses can be attributed to the closure of the branch office at 202 East State Street in Ithaca, NY during the second quarter of 2016.  The decrease in other real estate owned expenses can be attributed to the sale of properties in 2016.

Income Tax Expense:

The effective tax rate decreased to 30.5% for the year ended December 31, 2016 compared with 33.1% for the same period in the prior year.  The decrease in the effective tax rate can be attributed to the formation of Chemung Risk Management, Inc., and increasing the utilization of the Bank’s real estate investment trust.

4th Quarter 2016 vs 3rd Quarter 2016

Net Interest Income:

Net interest income for the current quarter totaled $13.3 million compared with $13.0 million for the prior quarter, an increase of $0.3 million, or 2.0%.  Interest and fees from loans increased $0.1 million and interest and dividend income from securities increased $0.1 million.  Fully taxable equivalent net interest margin was 3.33% consistent with the prior quarter.  Average interest-earning assets increased $29.9 million compared to the prior quarter.  The yield on interest-earning assets and cost of interest-bearing liabilities both decreased one basis point compared to the prior quarter. 

Non-Interest Income:

Non-interest income for the quarter was $4.9 million compared with $5.4 million for the prior quarter, a decrease of $0.5 million, or 9.9%.  The decrease was due primarily to decreases of $0.2 million in interchange revenue from debit card transactions and $0.2 million in other non-interest income.  The decrease in interchange revenue from debit card transactions can be mostly attributed to the recognition of an incremental volume bonus related to the rebranding of the Bank’s credit cards in 2015 during the third quarter. 

Non-Interest Expense:

Non-interest expense for the quarter was $13.6 million compared with $13.5 million for the prior quarter, an increase of $0.1 million, or 0.7%.  The increase was due primarily to increases of $0.3 million in professional services, $0.1 million in marketing and advertising expenses, and $0.2 million in other non-interest expenses, offset by decreases of $0.1 million in salaries and wages and $0.3 million in pension and other employee benefits.  The increase in professional services can be mostly attributed to legal costs associated with the appeal of the Fane v. Chemung Canal Trust Company case.  The decrease in pension and other employee benefits can be mostly attributed to a decline in health insurance costs and a $0.3 million curtailment gain related to the amendment of the defined benefit health care plan during the quarter, offset by additional payroll tax associated with year-end incentives paid in 2017.

Income Tax Expense:

The effective tax rate decreased to 30.1% for the current quarter compared with 30.6% for the prior quarter.  The decrease in the effective tax rate can be attributed to increasing the utilization of the Bank’s real estate investment trust.

4th Quarter 2016 vs 4th Quarter 2015

Net Interest Income:

Net interest income for the current quarter totaled $13.3 million compared with $13.0 million for the same period in the prior year, an increase of $0.3 million, or 2.6%.  Interest and fees from loans increased $0.5 million when compared to the same period in the prior year.  Fully taxable equivalent net interest margin was 3.33%, compared with 3.42% for the same period in the prior year.  Average interest-earning assets increased $85.1 million compared to the same period in the prior year.  The yield on interest-earning assets decreased nine basis points, while the cost of interest-bearing liabilities remained flat compared to the same period in the prior year.  The decline in the yield on interest-earning assets can be mostly attributed to a four basis decline in the yield on loans and 23 basis point decline in the yield on investments.

Non-Interest Income:

Non-interest income for the quarter was $4.9 million compared with $5.0 million for the same period in the prior year, a decrease of $0.1 million, or 2.5%.  The decrease was due primarily to a decrease of $0.4 million in other non-interest income, offset by a $0.2 million increase in interchange revenue from deposit accounts.  The decrease in other non-interest income can be attributed to a decline in CFS Group, Inc. fee income and rental income from other real estate owned properties, which were sold in 2016.

Non-Interest Expense:

Non-interest expense for the quarter was $13.6 million compared with $14.2 million for the same period in the prior year, a decrease of $0.6 million, or 4.7%.  The decrease was due primarily to decreases of $0.6 million in salaries and wages, $0.1 million in net occupancy expenses, $0.2 million in data processing expenses, and $0.4 million in other real estate owned expenses, offset by increases of $0.2 million pension and other employee benefits and $0.4 million in professional services.  The decrease in salaries and wages can be attributed to a reduction in full time equivalents, along with higher incentive awards during the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to the same period in 2016.  The decrease in net occupancy expenses can be attributed to the closure of the branch office at 202 East State Street in Ithaca, NY during the second quarter of 2016.  The decrease in other real estate owned expenses can be attributed to the sale of properties in 2016.  The increase in pension and other employee benefits can be mostly attributed to an increase in health insurance costs, offset by a $0.3 million curtailment gain related to the amendment of the defined benefit health care plan during the quarter.  The increase in professional services can be mostly attributed to legal costs associated with the appeal of the Fane v. Chemung Canal Trust Company case. 

Income Tax Expense:

The effective tax rate decreased to 30.1% for the quarter compared with 32.1% for the same period in the prior year.  The decrease in the effective tax rate can be attributed to the formation of Chemung Risk Management, Inc., a captive insurance subsidiary of the Corporation, and increasing the utilization of the Bank’s real estate investment trust.

Asset Quality

Non-performing loans totaled $12.0 million at December 31, 2016, or 1.00% of total loans, compared with $12.2 million at December 31, 2015, or 1.05% of total loans.  The decrease in non-performing loans at December 31, 2016 was primarily in the commercial mortgage segment, offset by increases in the residential mortgage and consumer loan segments of the loan portfolio.  Non-performing assets, which are comprised of non-performing loans and other real estate owned, were $12.4 million, or 0.75% of total assets, at December 31, 2016, compared with $13.8 million, or 0.85% of total assets, at December 31, 2015.  The decrease in non-performing assets was due to the sale of one large commercial property in other real estate owned.

Management performs an ongoing assessment of the adequacy of the allowance for loan losses based upon a number of factors including an analysis of historical loss factors, collateral evaluations, recent charge-off experience, credit quality of the loan portfolio, current economic conditions and loan growth.  Based on this analysis, the provision for loan losses for the fourth quarter of 2016 and 2015 were $0.4 million and $0.6 million, respectively.  Net charge-offs for the fourth quarter of 2016 were $1.5 million compared with $0.4 million for the same period in the prior year.  The increase in the net charge-offs, compared to the same period in the prior year, can be attributed to the write-off of specifically reserved commercial loans.   

The allowance for loan losses was $14.3 million as of December 31, 2016 and 2015.  The allowance for loan losses was 118.4% of non-performing loans at December 31, 2016 compared with 116.6% at December 31, 2015.  The ratio of the allowance for loan losses to total loans was 1.19% at December 31, 2016 compared with 1.22% at December 31, 2015.

Balance Sheet Activity

Assets totaled $1.657 billion at December 31, 2016 compared with $1.620 billion at December 31, 2015, an increase of $37.2 million, or 2.3%.  The growth was due primarily to increases of $48.0 million in cash and cash equivalents and $31.7 million in the loan portfolio, partially offset by a $41.4 million decrease in securities available for sale. 

The increase in cash and cash equivalents can be attributed to maturities, pay-downs, and the sale of available for sale securities and an increase in deposits, offset by an increase in total loans and the pay down of FHLB overnight advances.

The increase in total loans can be attributed to increases of $62.2 million in commercial mortgages and $2.7 million in residential mortgages, offset by decreases in commercial and agriculture of $16.7 million, indirect consumer of $11.8 million, and other consumer of $4.8 million.

The decrease in securities available for sale can be mostly attributed to the sale of $14.5 million in U.S. treasuries in the first quarter and $25.0 million obligations of U.S. Government sponsored enterprises in the third and fourth quarters, along with $89.8 million in calls and maturities of U.S. Government sponsored enterprises and pay-downs on mortgage-backed securities, and an unrealized loss of $7.2 million for year-to-date 2016, offset by additional purchases of $1.8 million in obligations of states and political subdivisions and $94.7 million in mortgaged-backed securities. 

Deposits totaled $1.456 billion at December 31, 2016 compared with $1.400 billion at December 31, 2015, an increase of $56.0 million, or 4.0%.  The growth was attributable to increases of $15.6 million in non-interest bearing demand deposits, $6.3 million in interest-bearing demand deposits, $51.3 million in money market accounts, and $4.9 million in savings deposits.  Partially offsetting the increases noted above was a decrease of $22.0 million in time deposits.  The changes in money market accounts and demand deposits can be attributed to new municipal clients, along with the seasonal inflow of deposits from existing municipal clients.

Total equity was $143.7 million at December 31, 2016 compared with $137.2 million at December 31, 2015, an increase of $6.5 million, or 4.7%.  The increase was primarily due to earnings of $10.0 million, a reduction of $1.1 million in treasury stock, and a decrease of $0.2 million in accumulated other comprehensive loss, offset by $4.9 million in dividends declared during the year.

The total equity to total assets ratio was 8.67% at December 31, 2016 compared with 8.47% at December 31, 2015.  The tangible equity to tangible assets ratio was 7.29% at December 31, 2016 compared with 6.99% at December 31, 2015.  Book value per share increased to $30.07 at December 31, 2016 from $28.96 at December 31, 2015.  As of December 31, 2016, the Bank’s capital ratios were in excess of those required to be considered well-capitalized under regulatory capital guidelines and the Corporation met capital requirements under regulatory guidelines.

Other Items

The market value of total assets under management or administration in our Wealth Management Group was $1.721 billion at December 31, 2016, including $294.9 million of assets under management or administration for the Corporation, compared with $1.856 billion at December 31, 2015, including $304.1 million of assets held under management or administration for the Corporation, a decrease of $134.5 million, or 7.3%.  The decrease can be mostly attributed to the loss of one large non-profit customer during the first quarter of 2016.

About Chemung Financial Corporation

Chemung Financial Corporation is a $1.7 billion financial services holding company headquartered in Elmira, New York and operates 33 retail offices through its principal subsidiary, Chemung Canal Trust Company, a full-service community bank with trust powers.  Established in 1833, Chemung Canal Trust Company is the oldest locally-owned and managed community bank in New York State.  Chemung Financial Corporation is also the parent of CFS Group, Inc., a financial services subsidiary offering non-traditional services including mutual funds, annuities, brokerage services, tax preparation services and insurance, and Chemung Risk Management, Inc., a captive insurance company based in the State of Nevada.

This press release may be found at: www.chemungcanal.com under Investor Relations.

Chemung Financial Corporation

GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliations (Unaudited)

The Corporation prepares its Consolidated Financial Statements in accordance with GAAP.  See the Corporation’s unaudited consolidated balance sheets and statements of income contained within this press release. That presentation provides the reader with an understanding of the Corporation’s results that can be tracked consistently from period-to-period and enables a comparison of the Corporation’s performance with other companies’ GAAP financial statements.

In addition to analyzing the Corporation’s results on a reported basis, management uses certain non-GAAP financial measures, because it believes these non-GAAP financial measures provide information to investors about the underlying operational performance and trends of the Corporation and, therefore, facilitate a comparison of the Corporation with the performance of its competitors. Non-GAAP financial measures used by the Corporation may not be comparable to similarly named non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies.

The SEC has adopted Regulation G, which applies to all public disclosures, including earnings releases, made by registered companies that contain “non-GAAP financial measures.”  Under Regulation G, companies making public disclosures containing non-GAAP financial measures must also disclose, along with each non-GAAP financial measure, certain additional information, including a reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure to the closest comparable GAAP financial measure and a statement of the Corporation’s reasons for utilizing the non-GAAP financial measure as part of its financial disclosures.  The SEC has exempted from the definition of “non-GAAP financial measures” certain commonly used financial measures that are not based on GAAP.  When these exempted measures are included in public disclosures, supplemental information is not required.  The following measures used in this Report, which are commonly utilized by financial institutions, have not been specifically exempted by the SEC and may constitute "non-GAAP financial measures" within the meaning of the SEC's new rules, although we are unable to state with certainty that the SEC would so regard them.

Fully Taxable Equivalent Net Interest Income, Net Interest Margin, and Efficiency Ratio

Net interest income is commonly presented on a tax-equivalent basis.  That is, to the extent that some component of the institution's net interest income, which is presented on a before-tax basis, is exempt from taxation (e.g., is received by the institution as a result of its holdings of state or municipal obligations), an amount equal to the tax benefit derived from that component is added to the actual before-tax net interest income total.  This adjustment is considered helpful in comparing one financial institution's net interest income to that of other institutions or in analyzing any institution’s net interest income trend line over time, to correct any analytical distortion that might otherwise arise from the fact that financial institutions vary widely in the proportions of their portfolios that are invested in tax-exempt securities, and that even a single institution may significantly alter over time the proportion of its own portfolio that is invested in tax-exempt obligations.  Moreover, net interest income is itself a component of a second financial measure commonly used by financial institutions, net interest margin, which is the ratio of net interest income to average interest-earning assets.  For purposes of this measure as well, fully taxable equivalent net interest income is generally used by financial institutions, as opposed to actual net interest income, again to provide a better basis of comparison from institution to institution and to better demonstrate a single institution’s performance over time.  The Corporation follows these practices.

The efficiency ratio is a non-GAAP financial measure which represents the Corporation’s ability to turn resources into revenue and is calculated as non-interest expense divided by total revenue (fully taxable equivalent net interest income and non-interest income), adjusted for one-time occurrences and amortization.  This measure is meaningful to the Corporation, as well as investors and analysts, in assessing the Corporation’s productivity measured by the amount of revenue generated for each dollar spent.

Tangible Equity and Tangible Assets (Period-End)

Tangible equity, tangible assets, and tangible book value per share are each non-GAAP financial measures. Tangible equity represents the Corporation’s stockholders’ equity, less goodwill and intangible assets.  Tangible assets represents the Corporation’s total assets, less goodwill and other intangible assets.  Tangible book value per share represents the Corporation’s equity divided by common shares at period-end.  These measures are meaningful to the Corporation, as well as investors and analysts, in assessing the Corporation’s use of equity.

Tangible Equity (Average)

Average tangible equity and return on average tangible equity are each non-GAAP financial measures. Average tangible equity represents the Corporation’s average stockholders’ equity, less average goodwill and intangible assets for the period.  Return on average tangible equity measures the Corporation’s earnings as a percentage of average tangible equity.  These measures are meaningful to the Corporation, as well as investors and analysts, in assessing the Corporation’s use of equity.