Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania -- Univest Bank and Trust Co. - Reports Second Quarter Earnings

SOUDERTON, Pa., July 22, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania ("Univest" or "Corporation") (NASDAQ:UVSP), parent company of Univest Bank and Trust Co. ("Bank") and its insurance, investments and equipment financing subsidiaries, today announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2015. Univest reported net income of $6.5 million or $0.33 diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2015, a 27% increase from reported net income of $5.1 million or $0.31 diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2014. Net income for the six months ended June 30, 2015 was $12.6 million or $0.63 diluted earnings per share, a 16% increase in net income compared to $10.8 million or $0.66 diluted earnings per share for the comparable period in the prior year. The quarter and year-to-date financial results include the Valley Green Bank acquisition which Univest completed on January 1, 2015 and now operates as Valley Green Bank, a Division of the Bank ("Valley Green Bank.") The results for the quarter included $1.6 million of restructuring charges related to the previously announced consolidation of six financial centers in the third quarter of 2015 under the Bank's optimization plan or $0.05 diluted earnings per share on a tax affected basis. The results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2015 also included $151 thousand and $2.0 million, respectively, of integration and acquisition-related costs associated with Valley Green Bank or $0.07 diluted earnings per share on a year-to-date tax affected basis. Excluding these costs, net income for the three and six months ended June 30, 2015, would have been $7.6 million and $15.0 million or $0.38 and $0.75 diluted earnings per share, respectively.

Loans

Gross loans and leases increased $481.2 million from December 31, 2014 and $520.9 million from June 30, 2014, including $381.1 million of loans acquired from Valley Green Bank. Organic loan growth was 6% (12% annualized) from December 31, 2014 and 9% from June 30, 2014. The growth in loans from December 31, 2014 and June 30, 2014 was primarily in commercial business loans, commercial real estate loans and residential real estate loans as economic conditions continued to improve.

Deposits

Total deposits increased $401.7 million from December 31, 2014 and $430.8 million from June 30, 2014, primarily due to $385.9 million of deposits acquired from Valley Green Bank.

Borrowings

Borrowings at June 30, 2015, included $50 million in aggregate principal amount fixed-to-floating rate subordinated notes issued in a private placement transaction to institutional accredited investors completed on March 30, 2015. The subordinated notes have a five-year fixed rate of 5.10% and thereafter a rate of three-month LIBOR plus 3.544% until the maturity date of March 30, 2025, or any early redemption date.

Net Interest Income and Margin

Net interest income increased $5.6 million to $23.4 million for the second quarter of 2015 from the same period in 2014. Net interest income increased $11.0 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015 from the same period in the prior year. The net interest margin on a tax-equivalent basis for the second quarter of 2015 was 4.03%, compared to 4.12% for the first quarter of 2015 and 3.86% for the second quarter of 2014. The increases in net interest income and net interest margin during 2015 were mainly due to the impact of the Valley Green Bank acquisition, which included the average net interest-earning assets acquired and the net accretion of acquisition accounting fair value adjustments (the impact of the acquisition accounting adjustments was 14 basis points for the second quarter of 2015 and 11 basis points for the six months ended June 30, 2015). The subordinated debt issuance increased funding costs by 15 basis points in the second quarter of 2015 and 8 basis points for the six months ended June 30, 2015.

Non-Interest Income

Non-interest income for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 was $13.4 million, an increase of $1.4 million or 12% from the second quarter of 2014. Non-interest income for the six months ended June 30, 2015 was $26.8 million, an increase of $2.7 million or 11% from the comparable period in the prior year. Insurance commission and fee income increased $1.0 million for the quarter and $1.8 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015, primarily due to the acquisition of Sterner Insurance on July 1, 2014. The net gain on mortgage banking activities increased $848 thousand for the quarter and $1.8 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015, mainly due to an increase in purchase volume. Funded first mortgage volume for the quarter increased $30.3 million or 115%, and $60.4 million or 138% for the six months ended June 30, 2015, compared to the same periods in 2014. These favorable increases were partially offset by a decline in investment advisory commission and fee income of $269 thousand for the quarter and $555 thousand for the six months ended June 30, 2015. The decline in investment advisory commission and fee income was related to the fourth quarter of 2014 divestiture of approximately $375 million in marginally profitable assets under the supervision of independent consultants.

Non-Interest Expense

Non-interest expense for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 was $26.8 million, an increase of $5.0 million or 23% compared to the second quarter of 2014. Non-interest expense for the six months ended June 30, 2015 was $54.2 million, an increase of $11.6 million or 27% from the comparable period in the prior year. Non-interest expense was impacted by the Valley Green Bank acquisition which included integration and acquisition-related costs totaling $151 thousand for the quarter and $2.0 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015. Salaries and benefit expense increased $1.7 million for the quarter and $4.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015, primarily attributable to the Valley Green Bank and Sterner Insurance acquisitions and increased pension plan expense. This increase was partially offset by higher deferred loan origination costs. Commission expense increased $360 thousand for the quarter and $584 thousand for the six months ended June 30, 2015, mostly due to the increase in mortgage banking volume and the Sterner Insurance acquisition. Premises and equipment expenses increased $646 thousand for the quarter and $1.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2015 mainly due to the Valley Green Bank acquisition and increased investments in computer equipment and software.

In addition, non-interest expense during the second quarter of 2015 included restructuring charges of $1.6 million related to the third quarter of 2015 consolidation of six financial centers under the Bank's optimization plan which was approved and announced in April 2015. Univest anticipates minimal customer disruption as all offices are being consolidated with an existing office located within a few miles. The projected annualized savings from these consolidations is $1.9 million.

Asset Quality and Provision for Loan and Lease Losses

Non-accrual loans and leases, including non-accrual troubled debt restructured loans, were $17.7 million at June 30, 2015 compared to $17.3 million at December 31, 2014 and $17.7 million at June 30, 2014. During the second quarter of 2015, one large non-accrual construction credit was transferred to loans held for sale for $4.0 million (while remaining in non-accrual status) as an agreement was reached to sell the two construction loans associated with the credit prior to December 31, 2015. In conjunction, this credit incurred $1.3 million in charge-offs during the second quarter of 2015, as the loans were written down to the sale price. Net loan and lease charge-offs were $2.5 million during the second quarter of 2015 compared to $1.7 million for the second quarter of 2014. Non-accrual loans and leases as a percentage of total loans and leases (held for investment and nonaccrual loans held for sale) were 0.84% at June 30, 2015, compared to 1.07% at December 31, 2014 and 1.12% at June 30, 2014. The provision for loan and lease losses was $1.1 million for the second quarter of 2015, compared to $1.3 million for the second quarter of 2014.

The allowance for loan and lease losses as a percentage of loans and leases held for investment was 0.93% at June 30, 2015, compared to 1.27% at December 31, 2014 and 1.52% at June 30, 2014. At June 30, 2015, the allowance for loan and lease losses as a percentage of loans and leases held for investment, excluding loans acquired in the Valley Green Bank acquisition which were recorded at fair value as of the acquisition date, was 1.12%. The allowance for loan and lease losses to nonaccrual loans and leases held for investment equaled 143.11% at June 30, 2015, compared to 119.18% at December 31, 2014 and 140.00% at June 30, 2014.

Capital

Univest continues to remain well-capitalized at June 30, 2015. Univest adopted the new Basel III regulatory capital rules during the first quarter of 2015 under the transition rules. Total risk-based capital at June 30, 2015 under Basel III was 13.49%, well in excess of the regulatory minimum for well-capitalized status of 10%.

On May 27, 2015, the Corporation's Board of Directors approved an increase of 1,000,000 shares in the common shares available for repurchase under the Corporation's share repurchase program, or approximately 5% of the Corporation's common stock outstanding as of May 27, 2015. During the quarter, Univest repurchased 284,061 shares of common stock at a cost of $5.7 million under the share repurchase program. Shares available for future repurchases under the plan totaled 1,166,896 at June 30, 2015. Total shares outstanding at June 30, 2015 were 19,559,941.

Dividend

On May 27, 2015, Univest declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share, payable on July 1, 2015. This represented a 3.89% annualized yield based on the closing price of Univest's stock on the date the dividend was paid.  

About Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (UVSP), including its wholly-owned subsidiary, Univest Bank and Trust Co., has $2.8 billion in assets and more than $3.0 billion in assets under management and supervision through its Wealth Management lines of business. Headquartered in Souderton, Pa. and founded in 1876, the Corporation and its subsidiaries provide a full range of financial solutions for individuals, businesses, municipalities and nonprofit organizations in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Univest delivers these services through a network of more than 50 offices in southeastern Pennsylvania extending to the Lehigh Valley, Maryland and online at www.univest.net.

This press release of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania and the reports Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania files with the Securities and Exchange Commission often contain "forward-looking statements" relating to present or future trends or factors affecting the financial services industry and, specifically, the financial operations, markets and products of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties. There are a number of important factors that could cause Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania's future results to differ materially from historical performance or projected performance. These factors include, but are not limited to: (1) a significant increase in competitive pressures among financial institutions; (2) changes in the interest rate environment that may reduce net interest margins; (3) changes in prepayment speeds, loan sale volumes, charge-offs and loan loss provisions; (4) general economic conditions; (5) legislative or regulatory changes that may adversely affect the businesses in which Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania is engaged; (6) technological issues which may adversely affect Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania's financial operations or customers; (7) changes in the securities markets or (8) risk factors mentioned in the reports and registration statements Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania files with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania undertakes no obligation to revise these forward-looking statements or to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.