Heartland Financial USA, Inc. Announces Record 2018 Annual Net Income and Solid Fourth Quarter Results

Highlights

• Quarterly net income available to common stockholders of $32.1 million, an increase of $18.5 million or 135% from the fourth quarter of 2017
• Annual net income available to common stockholders of $117.0 million, an increase of $41.7 million or 55% from 2017  
• Diluted earnings per common share of $0.93 for the quarter, an increase of $0.48 per share or 107% from the fourth quarter of 2017  
• Diluted earnings per common share of $3.52 for the year, an increase of $0.87 per share or 33% from 2017  
• Return on average common equity of 9.88% for the quarter and 9.93% for the year  
• Return on average tangible common equity (non-GAAP)⁽¹⁾ of 15.00% for the quarter and 14.79% for the year 
• Efficiency ratio, fully tax-equivalent (non-GAAP)⁽²⁾ of 59.37% for the quarter and 63.54% for the year   
• Declared and paid a special dividend of $0.05 per common share in December 2018  
• Announced agreement to acquire Blue Valley Ban Corp. on January 16, 2019

(1) Refer to the "Reconciliation of Return on Average Tangible Common Equity (non-GAAP)" table included in this earnings release.
(2) Refer to the "Reconciliation of Non-GAAP measure-Efficiency Ratio" table included in this earnings release.
(3) Refer to the "Reconciliation of Annualized Net Interest Margin, Fully Tax-Equivalent (non-GAAP)" table included in this earnings release.

DUBUQUE, Iowa, Jan. 28, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTLF) today reported net income available to common stockholders of $32.1 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2018, compared to $13.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2017, which was an increase of $18.5 million or 135%. Earnings per diluted common share were $0.93 for the fourth quarter of 2018, which was an increase of $0.48 or 107% from $0.45 per diluted common share for the same quarter of 2017. Return on average common equity was 9.88% and return on average assets was 1.12% for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to 5.50% and 0.55%, respectively, for the same quarter in 2017.

Net income available to common stockholders for the year 2018 was $117.0 million, an increase of $41.7 million or 55% from $75.2 million recorded for 2017. Earnings per diluted common share for the year ended December 31, 2018, were $3.52 compared to $2.65 per diluted common share for the year 2017, which was an increase of $0.87 or 33%. Return on average common equity was 9.93% and return on average assets was 1.09% for the year 2018, compared to 8.63% and 0.83%, respectively, for the same period in 2017.

Commenting on Heartland’s fourth quarter and annual results, Lynn B. Fuller, Heartland’s executive operating chairman, said, "Heartland had record earnings again in 2018. Net income available to common stockholders was $117.0 million, a 55 percent increase over 2017, and diluted earnings per common share increased 33 percent."

During the fourth quarter of 2018, Heartland entered into an agreement to sell the loan portfolios of its consumer finance subsidiaries, Citizens Finance Co. and Citizens Finance of Illinois Co. (collectively, "Citizens"). The loan portfolios had a fair value of $67.2 million and were classified as held for sale as of December 31, 2018. The transaction closed on January 11, 2019.

Heartland continued its branch optimization strategy in the fourth quarter of 2018 with the announcement of two branch sales, which resulted in the reclassification of $13.7 million of loans and $50.6 million of deposits as held for sale. These transactions, in addition to the branch sale announced in the third quarter of 2018, are expected to close in the first half of 2019.

During the fourth quarter of 2018, Heartland entered into arrangements to fully outsource its legacy residential mortgage lending business and has partnered with third party providers to offer residential mortgage loans to customers in many of its markets. PrimeWest Mortgage Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of First Bank & Trust, continues to provide mortgage loans to customers in Texas and has expanded to serve other customers in Heartland's Southwestern markets.

Bruce K. Lee, Heartland's president and chief executive officer, stated, "The decisions to exit the consumer finance business and alter our approach to providing residential mortgage loans were in response to changes in the competitive landscape in these markets. These actions, in addition to our branch optimization strategy, will allow us to focus our resources in areas with higher growth and earnings potential."

On January 16, 2019, Heartland entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire Blue Valley Ban Corp., and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Bank of Blue Valley, headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas. As of the announcement date, the transaction, in which all of the issued and outstanding shares of the Bank of Blue Valley stock will be exchanged for shares of Heartland common stock, was valued at approximately $93.9 million. Simultaneous with the closing of the transaction, Bank of Blue Valley will merge into Heartland's Kansas-based subsidiary, Morrill & Janes Bank and Trust Company, and the combined entity will operate as Bank of Blue Valley. The transaction is subject to certain potential adjustments and customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019 with a systems conversion planned for the third quarter of 2019. As of September 30, 2018, Bank of Blue Valley had total assets of approximately $725 million, which included approximately $527 million of net loans outstanding, and approximately $608 million of deposits.

Net Interest Margin Increases from Fourth Quarter 2017

Net interest margin, expressed as a percentage of average earning assets, was 4.28% (4.34% on a fully tax-equivalent basis) during the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to 4.32% (4.38% on a fully tax-equivalent basis) during the third quarter of 2018 and 4.14% (4.30% on a fully tax-equivalent basis) during the fourth quarter of 2017.

Lee said, “During this recent period of rising interest rates, we were pleased to see our net interest margin on a fully tax-equivalent basis remain strong at 4.34% for the quarter and 4.32% for the year."

Interest income for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $126.3 million, an increase of $24.2 million or 24%, compared to the $102.1 million recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017. The tax-equivalent adjustment, which accounts for income taxes saved on the interest earned on nontaxable securities and loans, was $1.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 and $3.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. With these adjustments, interest income on a tax-equivalent basis was $127.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of $22.2 million or 21%, compared to $105.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. The increase in interest income on a tax-equivalent basis was primarily due to the increase in average earning assets and the recent increases in market interest rates. Average earning assets totaled $10.23 billion during the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $8.89 billion during the fourth quarter of 2017, which was a $1.33 billion or 15% increase. The average rate on earning assets increased 25 basis points to 4.96% for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to 4.71% for the same quarter in 2017.

Interest expense for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $16.0 million, an increase of $6.8 million or 74% from $9.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2017. Average interest bearing deposits for the quarter ended December 31, 2018, totaled $6.16 billion, an increase of $953.1 million or 18% from $5.21 billion in the same quarter in 2017. The average interest rate paid on Heartland's interest bearing deposits increased 36 basis points to 0.76% for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to 0.40% for the same quarter of 2017. Heartland's average borrowings decreased $59.7 million or 13% to $397.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $457.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. The average rate paid on Heartland's average borrowings was 4.19% and 3.38% for the fourth quarter of 2018 and 2017, respectively. The increase of 32 basis points in the average interest rate paid on Heartland's interest bearing liabilities was primarily due to recent increases in market interest rates.

Net interest income increased $17.4 million or 19% to $110.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2018 from the $92.9 million recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017. After the tax-equivalent adjustment discussed above, net interest income on a tax-equivalent basis totaled $111.8 million during the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of $15.4 million or 16% from the $96.4 million recorded during the fourth quarter of 2017.

Noninterest Income and Noninterest Expenses Increase from Fourth Quarter 2017

Noninterest income totaled $27.0 million during the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $25.5 million during the fourth quarter of 2017, an increase of $1.5 million or 6%. Service charges and fees totaled $13.7 million during the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $9.9 million during the fourth quarter of 2017, an increase of $3.8 million or 38%. Service charges related to credit card income totaled $3.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of $1.5 million or 76% from $2.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. The remainder of the increase was primarily attributable to a larger customer base as a result of recent acquisitions. Securities gains, net, totaled $48,000 for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $1.4 million for the same quarter of 2017, which was a decrease of $1.4 million or 97%. Gains on sale of loans held for sale totaled $3.2 million during the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $4.3 million during the fourth quarter of 2017, a decrease of $1.1 million or 26%.

For the fourth quarter of 2018, noninterest expenses totaled $88.8 million compared to $77.9 million during the fourth quarter of 2017, an increase of $10.9 million or 14%. Salaries and employee benefits totaled $46.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, which was an increase of $3.4 million or 8% from $43.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. Full time equivalent employees totaled 2,045 as of December 31, 2018, compared to 2,008 as of December 31, 2017. Other noninterest expenses increased $5.3 million or 50% to $15.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to $10.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. Included in other noninterest expenses for the fourth quarter of 2018 were $3.9 million of write-downs on partnership investments that qualify for tax credits.

Heartland's effective tax rate was 17.22% for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to 61.13% for the fourth quarter of 2017. Exclusive of the increase to income tax expense of $10.4 million recorded as a result of the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in December 2017, Heartland's effective tax rate was 31.58% for the fourth quarter of 2017. Federal low-income housing tax credits included in the determination of Heartland's income taxes totaled $307,000 during both the fourth quarter of 2018 and 2017. Additionally, Heartland's income tax calculation included solar energy tax credits of $2.6 million and $179,000 for the fourth quarter of 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Loans and Deposits Increase Since December 31, 2017

Total assets were $11.41 billion at December 31, 2018, an increase of $1.60 billion or 16% from $9.81 billion at year-end 2017.  Excluding $427.1 million of assets acquired at fair value in the Signature Bancshares, Inc. ("Signature") transaction and $1.12 billion of assets acquired at fair value in the First Bank Lubbock Bancshares, Inc. ("FBLB") transaction, total assets increased $52.8 million or 1% since December 31, 2017. Securities represented 24% of total assets at December 31, 2018, compared to 25% at December 31, 2017.

Total loans held to maturity were $7.41 billion at December 31, 2018, compared to $6.39 billion at year-end 2017, an increase of $1.02 billion or 16%. Excluding $96.0 million of loans that were classified as held for sale in conjunction with the pending branch sales and the Citizens transaction and $1.01 billion of loans acquired in 2018, total loans held to maturity increased $106.7 million or 2% since year-end 2017.

Total deposits were $9.40 billion as of December 31, 2018, compared to $8.15 billion at year-end 2017, an increase of $1.25 billion or 15%. This increase included $1.25 billion of deposits, at fair value, acquired in the Signature and FBLB transactions. As of December 31, 2018, Heartland had $106.4 million of deposits classified as held for sale in conjunction with the pending branch sales. Exclusive of these transactions, total deposits increased $104.8 million or 1% since year-end 2017.

Demand deposits totaled $3.26 billion at December 31, 2018, an increase of $281.6 million or 9% from $2.98 billion at year-end 2017. Excluding $299.0 million of demand deposits acquired in 2018 and $25.5 million of demand deposits classified as held for sale, demand deposits increased $8.1 million or less than 1% since December 31, 2017.

Savings deposits increased $867.6 million or 20% to $5.11 billion at December 31, 2018 from $4.24 billion at year-end 2017. Excluding $619.0 million of savings deposits acquired in 2018 and $70.1 million of savings deposits classified as held for sale, savings deposits increased $318.7 million or 8% since year-end 2017.

Time deposits totaled $1.02 billion at December 31, 2018, which was an increase of $100.3 million or 11% from $923.5 billion at December 31, 2017. Excluding $333.1 million of time deposits acquired in 2018 and $10.9 million of time deposits classified as held for sale, time deposits decreased $222.0 million or 24% since December 31, 2017.

Nonperforming Assets and Provision for Loan Losses Increase Since December 31, 2017

Nonperforming assets were $79.3 million at December 31, 2018, compared to $74.6 million at December 31, 2017. Exclusive of $10.4 million of nonperforming assets, at fair value, acquired in 2018, nonperforming assets decreased $5.8 million or 8% since year-end 2017. Nonperforming loans were $72.7 million or 0.98% of total loans at December 31, 2018, compared to $63.4 million or 0.99% of total loans at December 31, 2017.

The allowance for loan losses at December 31, 2018, was 0.84% of loans and 85.27% of nonperforming loans compared to 0.87% of loans and 87.82% of nonperforming loans at December 31, 2017. The provision for loan losses was $9.7 million and $5.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 and 2017, respectively. The increased provision expense in the fourth quarter of 2018 significantly impacted Heartland's net income for the quarter. The increase was primarily due to two impaired commercial loans from acquired portfolios totaling $5.8 million for which provision expense of $4.0 million was required. Net charge-offs for the fourth quarter of 2018 totaled $8.9 million compared to $4.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2017, which was an increase of $4.4 million or 97%. The Citizens' loan portfolios were required to be recorded at fair value due to the held for sale classification, which resulted in a charge-off of $3.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Conference Call Details

Heartland will host a conference call for investors at 5:00 p.m. EDT today. To participate, dial 877-407-0782 at least five minutes before start time. To listen to the live webcast, log on to www.htlf.com at least 15 minutes before start time. A replay will be available until January 27, 2020, by logging on to www.htlf.com.

About Heartland Financial USA, Inc.

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is a diversified financial services company with assets of $11.4 billion. The company provides banking, mortgage, private client, investment and insurance services to individuals and businesses. Heartland currently has 121 banking locations serving 89 communities in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Arizona, Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and California. Additional information about Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is available at www.htlf.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release, and future oral and written statements of Heartland and its management, may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) about Heartland's financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business. Although these forward-looking statements are based upon the beliefs, expectations and assumptions of Heartland's management, there are a number of factors, many of which are beyond the ability of management to control or predict, that could cause actual results to differ materially from the projected results in Heartland's forward-looking statements. These factors, which are detailed in the risk factors in Heartland's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, consist of the following: (i) the strength of the national economy and the economies of local communities in which Heartland conducts business; (ii) the economic impact of past and any future terrorist threats and attacks and any acts of war; (iii) changes in state and federal banking laws and regulations and governmental policies relating to financial institutions; (iv) changes in interest rates and prepayment rates of Heartland's assets; (v) increased competition in the financial services sector and the inability of Heartland to attract new customers; (vi) changes in technology and Heartland's ability to develop and maintain secure and reliable electronic systems; (vii) the potential impact of acquisitions and Heartland's ability to successfully integrate acquired banks; (viii) the loss of key executives or employees; (ix) changes in consumer spending; (x) unexpected outcomes of existing or new litigation involving Heartland; and (xi) changes in accounting policies and practices. All statements in this press release, including forward-looking statements, speak only as of the date they are made, and Heartland undertakes no obligation to update any statement in light of new information or future events.

-FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW-