Marty Birmingham
Analyst · KBW. Damon, your line is now open. Please go ahead
Thank you, Kate. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. Our company finished the first half of 2023 in a very solid position. Our second quarter performance was highlighted by incremental loan growth that supported modest net interest income expansion and a continuation of strong and stable credit quality metrics. We also took steps to enhance our wealth management business, merging our two registered investment advisory subsidiaries. Through this merger Courier Capital has additional size and scale to better compete across our footprint for institutional clients, retirement plan sponsors and high net worth individuals and families. Operating under one brand also streamlines our business development efforts, primarily deepening relationships with existing wealth insurance and banking clients. Second quarter net income available to common shareholders was $14 million or $0.91 per diluted share, up from $11.7 million or $0.76 per share in the first quarter of 2023 and down from $15.3 million or $0.99 per share in the prior year period. And considering the year-over-year decrease in quarterly net income, the company recognized a normalization of loan loss provisioning in the current quarter versus the impact of a large commercial recovery in the second quarter of 2022, in addition to higher quarterly non-interest expenses due to past investments and talent and an increased FDIC insurance assessment. These increased expenses were partially offset by lower taxes in the current quarter, which benefited from investment tax spreads placed in service. I would note that much of our investment in human capital took place in 2022. We believe that this coupled with a previously announced organizational restructuring completed in December has positioned us well for the future, both from an expense standpoint in the near term and in terms of outperformance in our markets in the long-term. We have attracted high-quality talent to our organization, including experienced individuals joining from larger players who want to be a part of a growth story with a true community bank. On a linked quarter basis, our net income growth was driven by a lower level of provisions, higher non-interest income and lower income tax expense in the current quarter. Jack will provide more color on our income statement and performance relative to the first quarter of 2023 in his remarks. Deposit gathering remains a top focus. And as of June 30, 2023, total deposits were $5 billion, down $106.4 million or 2.1% from March 31, primarily due to normal seasonal public deposit outflows. Within our sizable public deposit portfolio, which includes local municipalities and school districts, we see a seasonal decrease in the second quarter based on cash flow requirements for the customers. Similarly, first quarter public deposits are typically higher as a result of inflows from tax payments and state funding during the period. While seasonality is the primary driver of the decline in public deposits, we are seeing a normalization of deposit levels in this space post the stimulus injection recognized during the pandemic. Non-public deposits increased from the linked quarter. We continue to see a disintermediation of lower cost demand and savings deposits into higher cost time deposit accounts. And similar trends for new account acquisition amid the current interest rate environment. Competition for deposits is strong in our markets similar to the rest of the country and we're focused on defending our deposit base and expanding our reach. We launched a new marketing campaign for money marketed accounts just this week and are beginning to see some of our anticipated Banking as a Service or BaaS deposits come on board. We consider BaaS deposits to be an alternative to high-cost wholesale funding. Reciprocal deposits also grew during the quarter, as this has become an attractive option affording our larger customers the benefit of FDIC insurance on accounts greater than $250,000. Total loans were $4.4 billion at June, 20, reflecting an increase of $154.5 million or 3.6% from March 31 led by commercial lending. Overall, our commercial portfolio was up 5.7% during the second quarter. We continue to believe that full year loan growth will be concentrated in the first half of the year. As we aim to reserve balance sheet capacity for our best customers with full relationships. Commercial mortgage growth in particular is expected to slow due to a combination of softer demand amid a challenging economic environment and higher pricing. Our pipelines are more modest than in prior periods with our overall commercial pipeline at June 30, 2023 less than half of what it was at year-end 2022 and one-third of the size it was one year ago. The change is even more notable in the Mid-Atlantic where our pipeline is about 20% of what it was on June 30, 2022. I'd like to discuss our Mid-Atlantic region in a bit more detail given the continued national media coverage of challenges facing major metros in office space in particular. For context, this team sits in a suburb of Baltimore and primarily serves customers headquartered in and around the Baltimore and Greater Washington D.C. area. The majority of loans are for projects and properties throughout Maryland and Virginia and outside of the central business district of D.C. As a result, our committed credit exposure within D.C. itself is very limited at just $25 million and none of our commitments in the Metro D.C. area are for large floor plate buildings. Office space accounts for just over one-third of our Mid-Atlantic loans and properties within this asset class and region are primarily located in heavy traffic areas near hospitals with a fair amount of medical leasing and high occupancy levels. As many industries and metros grapple with the return to office trends in the workplace, I would note that our commitments relate to much smaller buildings located outside of D.C. where non-federal workers are returning to the office. The health of our commercial portfolio remains strong and we reported just two basis points of net charge-offs to average commercial loans during the second quarter. Our residential loan portfolio grew during both the 3 months and 12 months ended June 30, 2023 despite the higher interest rate environment and tight housing inventory impacting home sales in our market primarily due to our partnerships with new homebuilders. Additionally, internal process enhancements have led to improved cycle times for both mortgages and home equity loans. Consistent with our other loan categories, we've made pricing adjustments to improve margins in this line of business. As expected, consumer and direct loan balances at quarter end were down modestly from both March 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023. This is due in part to our efforts to moderate production in this asset class, while maintaining our focus on credit quality as well as lower number of applications given increased cash deals, leasing activity and aggressive rate offers for manufacturers. The average portfolio FICO score of our indirect portfolio continues to exceed 700 and new production during the quarter came on a weighted average coupon of 9.31%. Our credit team is very experienced in this line of business is actively managing the portfolio to secure recoveries where possible. Accordingly, indirect charge-offs were only 12 basis points for the second quarter down from both the linked and year ago quarters. Our disciplined approach to credit risk management continues to support strong asset quality metrics overall. For the second quarter, we reported 23 basis points of non-performing loans to total loans and annualized net charge-offs to average loans of just six basis points. Provision for credit losses on loans was $3.2 million in the second quarter supporting the allowance for credit losses the total loans ratios of 113 basis points and 503% from non-performing loan at June 30. We remain confident in the overall performance and health of our loan portfolio despite the volatile operating requirement. This concludes my introductory comments and it's now my pleasure to turn the call over to Jack Plants for additional details on results and updates to guidance for 2023.