ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. Announces Results for Third Quarter of 2020

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Oct. 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: SFBS), today announced earnings and operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

Third Quarter 2020 Highlights:

• Diluted EPS for the third quarter increased 16% to $0.80 year over year
• Deposits grew 14% annualized during the third quarter
• Loans, excluding Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loans, grew 10% annualized during the third quarter
• Efficiency ratio improved to 28.50% during the third quarter 2020
• Liquidity remains strong with liquid assets to total deposits of 22%
• Our $34.5 million of 5% Subordinated Notes due July 15, 2025 are being refinanced with a $37 million offering of subordinated notes with an interest rate of 4% during the fourth quarter of 2020

Tom Broughton, Chairman, President and CEO, said, “I am pleased to see a rebound in loan demand from the early months of the pandemic. This is a very positive sign for the Southeastern US economy.”

Bud Foshee, CFO, said, “We continue to have a strong balance sheet with good credit quality and strong liquidity. This strong balance sheet has enabled us to perform above our peers during the pandemic.”

DETAILED FINANCIALS

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. reported net income and net income available to common stockholders of $43.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2020, compared to net income and net income available to common stockholders of $37.6 million for the same quarter in 2019. Basic and diluted earnings per common share were $0.80 and $0.80, respectively, for the third quarter of 2020, compared to $0.70 and $0.69, respectively, for the third quarter of 2019.

Annualized return on average assets was 1.54% and annualized return on average common stockholders’ equity was 18.43% for the third quarter of 2020, compared to 1.67% and 18.69%, respectively, for the third quarter of 2019.

Net interest income was $85.1 million for the third quarter of 2020, compared to $83.2 million for the second quarter of 2020 and $73.0 million for the third quarter of 2019. The net interest margin in the third quarter of 2020 was 3.14% compared to 3.32% in the second quarter of 2020 and 3.36% in the third quarter of 2019. Origination of PPP loans and increased excess liquidity drove unfavorable rate and mix changes while lower deposit rates and increases in noninterest bearing demand balances drove favorable rate and mix changes, respectively. Accretion of net fees on PPP loans of $4.0 million during the third quarter of 2020 offset the decrease in loan yield by approximately 19 basis points.

Average loans for the third quarter of 2020 were $8.36 billion, an increase of $31.5 million, or 2% annualized, over average loans of $8.33 billion for the second quarter of 2020, and an increase of $1.40 billion, or 20%, over average loans of $6.96 billion for the third quarter of 2019. We originated over 4,900 PPP loans during 2020 for a total of $1.05 billion. Excluding PPP loans, average loans for the third quarter of 2020 were $7.31 billion, a decrease of $136.0 million compared to the second quarter of 2020, and an increase of $350.6 million, or 5%, over average loans for the third quarter of 2019.

Average total deposits for the third quarter of 2020 were $9.47 billion, an increase of $595.4 million, or 27% annualized, over average total deposits of $8.87 billion for the second quarter of 2020, and an increase of $1.89 billion, or 25%, over average total deposits of $7.58 billion for the third quarter of 2019.

Nonperforming assets to total assets were 0.29% for the third quarter of 2020, an increase of three basis points compared to 0.26% for the second quarter of 2020 and a decrease of 23 basis points compared to 0.52% for the third quarter of 2019. Annualized net charge-offs to average loans were 0.54%, a 34 basis-point increase compared to 0.20% for the second quarter of 2020 and an increase of five basis points compared to 0.49% for the third quarter of 2019. The increase in net charge-offs for the third quarter of 2020 was due to a $7.2 million loan charge-off on a borrower severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We recorded a $12.3 million provision for loan losses in the third quarter of 2020 compared to $10.3 million in the second quarter of 2020 and $7.0 million in the third quarter of 2019. The allowance for loan loss as a percentage of total loans was 1.09% at September 30, 2020, a decrease of one basis point compared to 1.10% at June 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively. Excluding PPP loans, for all periods discussed, the allowance for loan loss as a percentage of total loans was 1.24% at September 30, 2020, a decrease of two basis points compared to 1.26% at June 30, 2020 and an increase of 14 basis points compared to 1.10% at September 30, 2019. The CARES Act, passed into law on March 27, 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, allows companies to delay their adoption of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2016-13, Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (CECL), including the current expected credit losses methodology for estimating allowances for credit losses. We have elected to delay adoption of ASU 2016-13 until the date on which the national emergency concerning the COVID-19 outbreak terminates or December 31, 2020, with an effective retrospective implementation date of January 1, 2020. In management’s opinion, the allowance is adequate and was determined by consistent application of ServisFirst Bank’s methodology for calculating its allowance for loan losses.

Noninterest income for the third quarter of 2020 increased $2.0 million, or 32%, to $8.2 million from $6.2 million in the third quarter of 2019. Mortgage banking revenue increased $1.2 million, or 89%, from the third quarter of 2019 to the third quarter of 2020. Mortgage loan origination volumes increased approximately 96% during the third quarter of 2020 when compared to the same quarter in 2019. Credit card revenue decreased $28,000, or 2%, to $1.8 million during the third quarter of 2020, compared to the third quarter of 2019. The amount of spend on purchase cards increased $23.0 million while the amount of spend on business credit cards decreased $8.0 million during the third quarter of 2020 when compared to the third quarter of 2019. Purchase card spend carries lower profit margins than credit cards due to their higher rebates. Income on life insurance policies increased $946,000, or 120%, to $1.7 million during the third quarter of 2020, compared to $787,000 during the third quarter of 2019. We purchased $75.0 million in BOLI contracts at the end of the third quarter of 2019 and another $40.0 million in July 2020. Other income for the third quarter of 2020 decreased $191,000, or 42%, to $262,000 from $453,000 in the third quarter of 2019. On May 4, 2020 we bought an interest rate cap with a term of three years and a notional amount of $300 million. The cap is tied to one-month LIBOR with a strike rate of 0.50%. We wrote down the value of the cap by $342,000 during the third quarter of 2020 and by $595,000 year-to-date through other income and are amortizing the fee paid to our counterparty over the life of the cap.

Noninterest expense for the third quarter of 2020 increased $1.4 million, or 6%, to $26.6 million from $25.2 million in the third quarter of 2019, and decreased $2.2 million, or 8%, on a linked quarter basis. Salary and benefit expense for the third quarter of 2020 decreased $505,000, or 3%, to $15.0 million from $15.5 million in the third quarter of 2019, and decreased $798,000, or 5%, on a linked quarter basis. Costs to originate PPP loans totaling $2.4 million were incurred during the second quarter of 2020. These costs were credited against salary and benefits as a deferred expense and will be amortized over the life of the loans by netting them against accretion of deferred origination fees. Bonuses of approximately $2.5 million were paid during the second quarter of 2020 related to work performed on the PPP. Additional bonuses of $71,000 were paid to front-line employees who continued to assist customers during the peak of the pandemic. The number of FTE employees decreased to 486 as of September 30, 2020 compared to 492 as of June 30, 2020 and 506 as of September 30, 2019. Equipment and occupancy expense increased $169,000, or 7%, to $2.6 million in the third quarter of 2020, from $2.4 million in the third quarter of 2019. Third party processing expenses increased $358,000, or 12%, to $3.3 million in the third quarter of 2020, from $2.9 million in the third quarter of 2019. Professional services expense increased $68,000, or 8%, to $955,000 in the third quarter of 2020, from $887,000 in the third quarter of 2019, and decreased $136,000, or 12%, from $1.1 million on a linked-quarter basis. FDIC and other regulatory assessments were $1.1 million in the third quarter of 2020 compared to a credit of $296,000 in the third quarter of 2019. The net assessment credit for the third quarter of 2019 resulted from the FDIC’s Small Bank Assessment Credit recorded by the Bank. Expenses associated with other real estate owned increased $41,000 to $119,000 in the third quarter of 2020, from $78,000 in the third quarter of 2019. Other operating expenses for the third quarter of 2020 decreased $76,000, or 2%, to $3.6 million from $3.7 million in the third quarter of 2019, and decreased $481,000, or 12%, on a linked-quarter basis. The efficiency ratio was 28.50% during the third quarter of 2020 compared to 31.76% during the third quarter of 2019 and compared to 31.92% during the second quarter of 2020.

Income tax expense increased $1.5 million, or 16%, to $11.0 million in the third quarter of 2020, compared to $9.5 million in the third quarter of 2019. Our effective tax rate was 20.29% for the third quarter of 2020 compared to 20.20% for the third quarter of 2019. State of Alabama tax credit investments matured at the end of 2019, causing our state credit amounts to decrease from $497,000 during the third quarter of 2019 to $132,000 during the third quarter of 2020. We recognized a reduction in provision for income taxes resulting from excess tax benefits from the exercise and vesting of stock options and restricted stock during the third quarters of 2020 and 2019 of $180,000 and $231,000, respectively.

The Company’s 5% Subordinated Notes due July 15, 2025 became redeemable in July 2020. Those Notes are being redeemed in the fourth quarter of 2020 and replaced with up to $37 million in 4% subordinated notes to be offered to holders of the redeemed Notes.

GAAP Reconciliation and Management Explanation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release contains certain non-GAAP financial measures, including tangible common stockholders’ equity, total tangible assets, tangible book value per share and tangible common equity to total tangible assets, each of which excludes goodwill and core deposit intangibles associated with our acquisition of Metro Bancshares, Inc. in January 2015. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to management and investors that is supplementary to our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows computed in accordance with GAAP; however, we acknowledge that these non-GAAP financial measures have a number of limitations. As such, you should not view these disclosures as a substitute for results determined in accordance with GAAP, and they are not necessarily comparable to non-GAAP financial measures that other companies, including those in our industry, use. The following reconciliation table provides a more detailed analysis of the non-GAAP financial measures as of and for the comparative periods presented in this press release. Dollars are in thousands, except share and per share data.

About Servi s First Bancshares, Inc.

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. is a bank holding company based in Birmingham, Alabama. Through its subsidiary ServisFirst Bank, ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. provides business and personal financial services from locations in Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery, Mobile and Dothan, Alabama, Pensacola, Sarasota and Tampa Bay, Florida, Atlanta, Georgia, Charleston, South Carolina and Nashville, Tennessee.

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. files periodic reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Copies of its filings may be obtained through the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or at www.servisfirstbancshares.com .

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts, including, but not limited to, statements concerning future operations, results or performance, are hereby identified as "forward-looking statements" for the purpose of the safe harbor provided by Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "project," “plan,” “intend,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “might” and similar expressions often signify forward-looking statements. Such statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. cautions that such forward-looking statements, wherever they occur in this press release or in other statements attributable to ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc., are necessarily estimates reflecting the judgment of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc.’s senior management and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various factors that could affect the accuracy of such forward-looking statements, including , but not limited to : the global health and economic crisis precipitated by the COVID-19 outbreak; general economic conditions, especially in the credit markets and in the Southeast; the performance of the capital markets; changes in interest rates, yield curves and interest rate spread relationships; changes in accounting and tax principles, policies or guidelines; changes in legislation or regulatory requirements; changes in our loan portfolio and the deposit base; economic crisis and associated credit issues in industries most impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak, including but not limited to, the restaurant, hospitality and retail sectors; possible changes in laws and regulations and governmental monetary and fiscal policies, including, but not limited to, economic stimulus initiatives; the cost and other effects of legal and administrative cases and similar contingencies; possible changes in the creditworthiness of customers and the possible impairment of the collect a bility of loans and the value of collateral; the effect of natural disasters, such as hurricanes and tornados, in our geographic markets; and increased competition from both banks and non-bank financial institutions. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. For discussion of these and other risks that may cause actual results to differ from expectations, please refer to “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K , in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for fiscal year 2020, and our other SEC filings. If one or more of the factors affecting our forward-looking information and statements proves incorrect, then our actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, forward-looking information and statements contained herein. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements that are made from time to time.

More information about ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. may be obtained over the Internet at www.servisfirstbancshares.com or by calling (205) 949-0302.

Contact: ServisFirst Bank
Davis Mange (205) 949-3420
dmange@servisfirstbank.com