United Community Banks, Inc. Reports Second Quarter Results

GREENVILLE, S.C., July 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- United Community Banks, Inc. ( UCBI) (“United”) today announced net income for the second quarter of $63.3 million and pre-tax, pre-provision income of $104.3 million. Diluted earnings per share of $0.53 for the quarter represented an increase of $0.01 or 2% from the first quarter of 2023 and a decrease of $0.08 or 13%, from the second quarter of 2022. Industry-wide deposit price competition drove increased deposit costs, leading to an $11.2 million decrease in net interest revenue for the quarter. This was offset by a decline in quarterly noninterest expenses and an increase in noninterest income. On an operating basis, diluted earnings per share of $0.55 decreased $0.03 or 5% compared to last quarter mainly due to net interest margin compression despite lower noninterest expenses and noninterest income growth. Deposits grew by 4.5% annualized and loans grew at a 6.3% annualized rate during the quarter. Credit continues to perform well, with net charge offs of 20 basis points, up slightly from 17 basis points in the previous quarter.

For the quarter, United’s return on assets was 0.95%, or 1.00% on an operating basis. Return on common equity was 7.5% and return on tangible common equity was 11.4%. On a pre-tax, pre-provision basis, operating return on assets was 1.65% for the quarter. At quarter-end, tangible common equity to tangible assets was 8.21%, up four basis points from the first quarter of 2023.

Chairman and CEO Lynn Harton stated, “We are pleased to continue to perform well despite a challenging interest rate environment. In the face of increased deposit pricing competition, we grew customer deposits and funded solid loan growth. This reflects the strength of our franchise and the loyalty of our customer base. Our loan growth was within our stated target range of mid to high single digits. Higher deposit costs due to mix and rate changes resulted in a lower net interest margin from the previous quarter, however, we still delivered strong returns and continued to strengthen our balance sheet.” Harton continued, “We also completed some important steps with our recent strategic expansions. We completed the operational conversion of Progress, which means they now officially operate under the United Community brand across their outstanding Alabama and Florida Panhandle markets. Just a few weeks ago, on July 1, we completed our merger with First Miami Bancorp and its bank subsidiary, First National Bank of South Miami. We continue to be excited and highly optimistic about what the future holds for these two great partnerships.”

United’s net interest margin decreased by 24 basis points to 3.37% from the first quarter. The average yield on United’s interest-earning assets was up 21 basis points to 4.97%, but its cost of deposits increased by 54 basis points to 1.64%, leading to the reduction in the net interest margin. Net charge-offs were $8.4 million or 0.20% of average loans during the quarter, up three basis points compared to the first quarter of 2023, and NPAs were 40 basis points relative to total assets, up 12 basis points from the previous quarter.

Mr. Harton concluded, “We continue to be pleased with the performance of our teams and our markets during this uncertain economic environment and interest rate driven headwinds. Our focus continues to be putting our clients and communities first and on prudently growing our business. We are very excited about our ability to strengthen our teams and recruit great bankers in the Southeast’s most attractive metropolitan markets and we look forward to continuing to build a great franchise.”

Second Quarter 2023 Financial Highlights:

• Net income of $63.3 million and pre-tax, pre-provision income of $104.3 million
• EPS decreased by 13% compared to last year on a GAAP basis and 17% on an operating basis; compared to first quarter 2023, EPS increased 2% on a GAAP basis and decreased 5% on an operating basis
• Return on assets of 0.95%, or 1.00% on an operating basis
• Pre-tax, pre-provision return on assets of 1.59%, or 1.65% when excluding merger-related and other charges
• Return on common equity of 7.5%
• Return on tangible common equity of 11.4% on an operating basis
• Loan production of $1.5 billion, resulting in organic loan growth of 6.3% annualized for the quarter
• Customer deposits, excluding brokered deposits and public funds, were up $109 million or 2.3% annualized from last quarter
• Total deposits are estimated to be 77% insured or collateralized
• Net interest margin of 3.37% was down 24 basis points from the first quarter due to increased deposit costs
• Mortgage closings of $263 million compared to $498 million a year ago; mortgage rate locks of $305 million compared to $597 million a year ago
• Noninterest income was up $6.2 million on a linked quarter basis with increases across multiple categories including services charges and fees, mortgage loan gains and related fees, as well as a one-time gain from the sale of our corporate benefits business; additionally, there were no losses on the sale of securities in the second quarter compared to $1.6 million in the first quarter
• Noninterest expenses decreased by $7.4 million compared to the first quarter on a GAAP basis and by $2.4 million on an operating basis, mostly due to a decrease in salaries and employee benefits expenses and lower merger-related and other charges
• Efficiency ratio of 55.7%, or 54.2% on an operating basis
• Net charge-offs of $8.4 million, or 20 basis points as a percent of average loans, up three basis points from the net charge-offs level experienced in the first quarter
• Nonperforming assets of 0.40% of total assets, up 12 basis points compared to March 31, 2023
• Quarterly common shareholder dividend of $0.23 per share declared during the quarter, an increase of 10% year-over-year
  

Conference Call

United will hold a conference call on Wednesday, July 19, 2023, at 11 a.m. ET to discuss the contents of this press release and to share business highlights for the quarter. Participants can pre-register for the conference call by navigating to https://dpregister.com/sreg/10180523/f9d90a99ea. Those without internet access or who are unable to pre-register may dial in by calling 1-866-777-2509. Participants are encouraged to dial in 15 minutes prior to the call start time. The conference call also will be webcast and available for replay by selecting “Events and Presentations” under “News and Events” within the Investor Relations section of United’s website at www.ucbi.com.