West Bancorporation, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2023 Financial Results and Declares Quarterly Dividend

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa, July 27, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Bancorporation, Inc. ( WTBA; the “Company”), parent company of West Bank, today reported second quarter 2023 net income of $5.9 million, or $0.35 per diluted common share, compared to first quarter 2023 net income of $7.8 million, or $0.47 per diluted common share, and second quarter 2022 net income of $12.7 million, or $0.75 per diluted common share. On July 26, 2023, the Company’s Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.25 per common share. The dividend is payable on August 23, 2023, to stockholders of record on August 9, 2023.

David Nelson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented, “The unprecedented size and pace of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate increases in the last year and the resulting inverted yield curve have had a dramatic impact on our deposit base and cost of funds. Our deposit and funding mix has changed as depositors react to intense short-term rate competition and utilize accumulated cash for business operations. The resulting increase in our cost of funds has outpaced the repricing benefits in loans and investments, leading to a decline in our net interest income and net interest margin.”

David Nelson added, “Our credit quality continues to be pristine. We had one loan past due more than 30 days at the end of the second quarter. This is the first time in two years that we have had a loan more than 30 days past due at quarter-end. We have one loan on nonaccrual status and a total of $536 thousand in loans on our watch and classified loan list. We remain diligent in monitoring and managing our credit risk in light of future economic uncertainty and the volatile interest rate environment. Our capital position is strong and we remain focused on delivering high quality services and products through our successful relationship based business model.”

Second Quarter 2023 Financial Highlights

Second Quarter 2023 Compared to First Quarter 2023 Overview

• Loans increased $50.9 million in the second quarter of 2023, or 7.4 percent annualized.
  

• No provision for credit losses was recorded in either the second quarter of 2023 or the first quarter of 2023.
  

• The allowance for credit losses to total loans was 1.00 percent at June 30, 2023, compared to 1.01 percent at March 31, 2023.
  

• There was one loan with a balance of $229 thousand that was greater than 30 days past due at June 30, 2023. This loan is guaranteed by the SBA. For the seven consecutive quarter-ends prior to June 30, 2023, there were no loans greater than 30 days past due. Nonaccrual loans at June 30, 2023 consisted of one loan with a balance of $309 thousand.
  

• Commercial real estate loans totaling $52.6 million were upgraded and removed from the watch list during the second quarter of 2023. These loans related to one borrowing relationship that had been downgraded during the COVID-19 pandemic. The upgrade resulted from the borrowers’ ability to return to normal operations and financial performance for an extended period of time.
  

• Deposits increased $37.9 million in the second quarter of 2023. Brokered deposits totaled $230.7 million at June 30, 2023, compared to $234.2 million at March 31, 2023, a decrease of $3.5 million. Excluding brokered deposits, deposits increased $41.4 million, or 1.6 percent, during the second quarter of 2023. As of June 30, 2023, estimated uninsured deposits, which excludes deposits in the IntraFi^® reciprocal network, brokered deposits and public funds protected by state programs, were approximately 27.5 percent of total deposits.
  

• The efficiency ratio (a non-GAAP measure) was 62.83 percent for the second quarter of 2023, compared to 55.34 percent for the first quarter of 2023. The increase in the efficiency ratio is primarily the result of the decline in tax equivalent net interest income and an increase in salaries and employee benefits.

• Net interest margin, on a fully tax-equivalent basis (a non-GAAP measure), was 2.02 percent for the second quarter of 2023, compared to 2.23 percent for the first quarter of 2023. Net interest income for the second quarter of 2023 was $17.3 million, compared to $18.7 million for the first quarter of 2023. The rising cost of deposits and borrowed funds and the change in mix of funding has increased interest expense faster than the increase in interest income from loan repricing and loan originations.

• The tangible common equity ratio was 5.90 percent at June 30, 2023, compared to 5.99 percent at March 31, 2023.

Second Quarter 2023 Compared to Second Quarter 2022 Overview

• Loans increased $233.9 million at June 30, 2023, or 9.1 percent, compared to June 30, 2022.

• Deposits decreased $6.1 million at June 30, 2023, compared to June 30, 2022. Included in deposits were brokered deposits totaling $230.7 million at June 30, 2023, compared to $196.5 million at June 30, 2022. The decline in deposits was primarily attributable to customers using their own liquidity to fund business transactions, instead of incurring debt, and customers seeking higher yielding investment options.

• Borrowed funds increased to $593.9 million at June 30, 2023, compared to $388.8 million at June 30, 2022. The increase included $135.0 million in FHLB advances associated with long-term interest rate swaps and $51.1 million in federal funds purchased and other short-term borrowings.

• The efficiency ratio (a non-GAAP measure) was 62.83 percent for the second quarter of 2023, compared to 41.96 percent for the second quarter of 2022. Tax-equivalent net interest income decreased in the second quarter of 2023 compared to the second quarter of 2022, primarily due to the increased cost of deposits and borrowed funds. Additionally, salaries and employee benefits increased due to wage increases in response to market conditions and competition in retaining and recruiting talent and increases in full-time equivalent employees with growth in our commercial banking team and information technology department.
  

• Net interest margin, on a fully tax-equivalent basis (a non-GAAP measure), was 2.02 percent for the second quarter of 2023, compared to 2.93 percent for the second quarter of 2022. Net interest income for the second quarter of 2023 was $17.3 million, compared to $24.2 million for the second quarter of 2022. In 2022 and 2023, the rising cost of deposits and borrowed funds and the change in mix of funding has increased interest expense faster than the increase in interest income from loan repricing and loan originations.
  

The Company filed its report on Form 10-Q with the Securities and Exchange Commission today. Please refer to that document for a more in-depth discussion of the Company’s financial results. The Form 10-Q is available on the Investor Relations section of West Bank’s website at www.westbankstrong.com.

The Company will discuss its results in a conference call scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Central Time on Thursday, July 27, 2023. The telephone number for the conference call is 833-470-1428. The access code for the conference call is 716035. A recording of the call will be available until August 10, 2023, by dialing 866-813-9403. The replay access code is 518749.

About West Bancorporation, Inc. ( WTBA)

West Bancorporation, Inc. is headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. Serving customers since 1893, West Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of West Bancorporation, Inc., is a community bank that focuses on lending, deposit services, and trust services for small- to medium-sized businesses and consumers. West Bank has six offices in the Des Moines, Iowa metropolitan area, one office in Coralville, Iowa, and four offices in Minnesota in the cities of Rochester, Owatonna, Mankato and St. Cloud.

Certain statements in this report, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to the Company’s business plans, objectives and expected operating results, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, are “forward-looking statements” within the meanings of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements may appear throughout this report. These forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “future,” “confident,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “strategy,” “plan,” “opportunity,” “will be,” “will likely result,” “will continue” or similar references, or references to estimates, predictions or future events. Such forward-looking statements are based upon certain underlying assumptions, risks and uncertainties. Because of the possibility that the underlying assumptions are incorrect or do not materialize as expected in the future, actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties that may affect future results include: interest rate risk, including the effects of recent rate increases by the Federal Reserve; fluctuations in the values of the securities held in our investment portfolio, including as a result of changes in interest rates; competitive pressures, including from non-bank competitors such as “fintech” companies and digital asset service providers; pricing pressures on loans and deposits; our ability to successfully manage liquidity risk; changes in credit and other risks posed by the Company’s loan portfolio, including declines in commercial or residential real estate values or changes in the allowance for credit losses dictated by new market conditions, accounting standards (including as a result of the implementation of the current expected credit loss (CECL) accounting standard) or regulatory requirements; the concentration of large deposits from certain clients who have balances above current FDIC insurance limits; changes in local, national and international economic conditions, including rising rates of inflation and possible recession; the effects of recent developments and events in the financial services industry, including the large-scale deposit withdrawals over a short period of time at Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and First Republic Bank that resulted in the failure of those institutions; changes in legal and regulatory requirements, limitations and costs including in response to the recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and First Republic Bank; changes in customers’ acceptance of the Company’s products and services; the occurrence of fraudulent activity, breaches or failures of our information security controls or cyber-security related incidents, including as a result of sophisticated attacks using artificial intelligence and similar tools; unexpected outcomes of existing or new litigation involving the Company; the monetary, trade and other regulatory policies of the U.S. government; acts of war or terrorism, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, widespread disease or pandemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, or other adverse external events; risks related to climate change and the negative impact it may have on our customers and their businesses; changes to U.S. tax laws, regulations and guidance; talent and labor shortages; the new 1 percent excise tax on stock buybacks by publicly traded companies; and any other risks described in the “Risk Factors” sections of reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update such forward-looking statements to reflect current or future events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.