Michael Collins
Analyst · KBW
Thank you, Noah, and thanks to everyone joining the call today. The bank's second quarter results were strong despite some of the challenges associated with COVID-19. As an essential service provider, the bank was able to support its clients throughout the health crisis with strict adherence to all recommended health and strict safety guidelines. We are grateful to our frontline staff, who braved uncertainty to help keep our island economies operating and to our customers for their understanding as we temporarily transition to a remote working environment. I have been very impressed with the bank's operational resilience and our ability to quickly adjust to the new safety guidelines and social distancing rules relevant in each jurisdiction. As you can see in the summary results on page 4 of the presentation, we reported net income of $34.3 million, or $0.67 per share. In the second quarter, net income was 14.9% lower than the prior quarter, due primarily to the COVID-19-related economic slowdown. Our core return on average tangible common equity was 15.5%, down from 18.6% in the prior quarter. Net interest margin was down 15 basis points to 2.48% compared to the linked quarter and our cost of deposits dropped 28 basis points to 14 basis points. We believe our capital position and profitability remains strong. And as a result, the Board approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.44 per share, while we continue to repurchase shares throughout the quarter. During the quarter, we successfully issued $100 million of 5.25%, 10-year fixed to floating rate subordinated debt, which will mostly be used to replace existing debt. It is beneficial for the bank to be a known issuer in the debt capital market and the latest sub-debt issuance helps us to continue the dialogue with fixed income investors. Turning now to slide 5. Butterfield operates in 10 locations with each jurisdiction managing through the health crisis relatively well at this point. In Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Jersey the suppression of COVID has overall been effective. Bermuda was just entering its tourism season, when the pandemic struck and the Island entered a mandatory shelter-in-place period for the month of April. The Island was essentially closed and has gradually reopened in May and June with the airport opening on July 1. The number of flights are significantly below historical norms, but are expected to increase in August and into the fall. The cruise ship season is effectively lost, which will cost the government passenger fees. And local businesses such as transportation companies, bars, restaurants and retailers will also miss out on significant revenue. With fewer flights to the island, hotels will also be impacted by the limited tourist season, which typically is most active through October. The timing of shutdowns in Cayman came toward the end of their 2019 tourism season. And they have been in their summer slow season, which has moderated the severity impact on their bare economy so far. They're hoping to open their airport in the next couple of months, as they approach the traditional autumn and winter tourism season. The Channel Islands have had more COVID cases due to their proximity to the U.K. and France, but tourism is not a significant contributor to the economy compared to Bermuda and Cayman where tourism is approximately 17% and 25% respectively. We've been making significant strides to help support our communities through these challenging times. In addition to local community-based programs, we have offered residential mortgage deferrals to clients in good standing in both Bermuda and Cayman for up to six months, and three-month interest-only options to small- and medium-sized businesses. We are also working closely with larger corporate clients who may need to adjust terms of their loans and working capital requirements. We will continue to look at how we run our business in the near and longer-term, reviewing costs and potential for new fee-generating opportunities with less reliance on interest rate-sensitive revenue sources. Butterfield's exposure to hotels and restaurants remain limited with well-structured loans and collateral packages in place. The remaining mortgage referrals expire in September after six months and we will be keeping in close contact with clients and we'll continue to work with customers who may need assistance. I will now turn the call over to Michael Schrum to provide more details on the second quarter.