SPRINGFIELD, Mo., Jan. 16, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Guaranty Federal Bancshares, Inc. (Nasdaq:GFED), the holding company for Guaranty Bank (the "Company"), today announced the following highlights for its year ended December 31, 2006:
2006 Financial Highlights * Earnings per share increased 10% over prior year * Assets increased $44 million, or 9% over prior year * Loans increased $44 million, or 10% over prior year * Deposits increased $32 million, or 10% over prior year * Net earnings increased 10% over prior year * Net interest income increased 15% over prior year * Net interest margin increased 27 basis points over prior year to 3.77% * Book value increased 7% to $16.30 * Return on average assets increased 5 basis points to 1.33% * Return on average equity increased 64 basis points to 14.77%
The Company also announced that earnings for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2006 were $1,739,000 compared to $1,648,000 during the same period in 2005. Basic earnings per share for the quarter were $0.63, up 6.8% over the same quarter in 2005. Diluted earnings per share were up 8.9%, increasing from $0.56 per share in the fourth quarter 2005 to $0.61 per share in 2006.
Basic earnings per share for the twelve months ended December 31, 2006 were $2.34, a 10.4% increase over the $2.12 earned during the twelve months ended December 31, 2005. Diluted earning per share increased 10.8% to $2.25 compared to $2.03 per share in 2005.
Total assets were $525 million at December 31, 2006, up 9.1% from $481 million at December 31, 2005. Loans increased 10.1% or $44 million to $480 million at December 31, 2006, from $436 million at December 31, 2005. Stockholders' equity as of December 31, 2006, was $45 million (8.6% of total assets), equivalent to a book value per share of $16.30. Book value per share increased $1.13 (7.4%) from $15.17 per share at December 31, 2005.
For the twelve-month period ended December 31, 2006, return on average assets was 1.33%, compared to 1.28% for the same period in 2005. Return on average equity was 14.77% for the twelve-month period ended December 31, 2006, constituting a 4.5% increase over the 14.13% return for the twelve-month period ended December 31, 2005.
The Company continues its history of enhancing shareholder value and on July 25, 2006 announced a plan to repurchase up to 250,000 shares of its common stock. As of December 31, 2006, 86,523 shares had been repurchased by the Company pursuant to this repurchase plan at an average cost of $28.62 per share.
"We are extremely pleased that 2006 represents the third consecutive year that the company has posted a double-digit increase in earnings per share. Combining our significant investment in people and technology with our relationship driven approach to expanding business continues to produce positive results," said Shaun A. Burke, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
Guaranty Federal Bancshares, Inc. (Nasdaq:GFED) has a subsidiary corporation offering full banking services. The principal subsidiary, Guaranty Bank, is located in Springfield, Missouri, and has eight branches and 20 ATM locations located in Greene and Christian Counties and Loan Production Offices in Howell, Wright and Webster Counties. In addition, Guaranty Bank is a member of the TransFund ATM network which provides its customers surcharge free access to over 80 area ATMs and over 700 ATMs nationwide.
The discussion set forth above may contain forward-looking comments. Such comments are based upon the information currently available to management of the Company and management's perception thereof as of the date of this release. When used in this release, words such as "anticipates," "estimates," "believes," "expects," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results of the Company's operations could materially differ from those forward-looking comments. The differences could be caused by a number of factors or combination of factors including, but not limited to: changes in demand for banking services; changes in portfolio composition; changes in management strategy; increased competition from both bank and non-bank companies; changes in the general level of interest rates; the effect of regulatory or government legislative changes; technology changes; fluctuation in inflation; and other factors set forth in reports and other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time.
Financial Highlights: Quarter ended Year ended ------------------- -------------------- Operating Data: 31-Dec-06 31-Dec-05 31-Dec-06 31-Dec-05 --------- --------- --------- --------- (Dollar amounts are in thousands, except per share data) Total interest income $ 9,547 $ 7,730 $35,066 $27,283 Total interest expense 4,948 3,490 17,386 11,860 Provision for loan losses 150 240 750 945 ------- ------- ------- ------- Net interest income after provision for loan losses 4,449 4,000 16,930 14,478 Noninterest income 1,096 914 3,798 3,597 Noninterest expense 2,636 2,267 10,177 8,670 ------- ------- ------- ------- Income before income tax 2,909 2,647 10,551 9,405 Income tax expense 1,170 999 4,042 3,506 ------- ------- ------- ------- Net income $ 1,739 $ 1,648 $ 6,509 $ 5,899 ======= ======= ======= ======= Net income per share-basic $ 0.63 $ 0.59 $ 2.34 $ 2.12 ======= ======= ======= ======= Net income per share-diluted $ 0.61 $ 0.56 $ 2.25 $ 2.03 ======= ======= ======= ======= Annualized return on average assets 1.36% 1.37% 1.33% 1.28% Annualized return on average equity 15.30% 14.74% 14.77% 14.13% Net interest margin 3.72% 3.71% 3.77% 3.50% As of As of Financial Condition Data: 31-Dec-06 31-Dec-05 --------- --------- Cash and cash equivalents $ 14,881 $ 20,506 Investments 8,669 7,702 Loans, net of allowance for loan losses 480,269 435,528 12/31/2006 - $5,783; 12/31/2005 - $5,400 Other assets 21,026 17,265 --------- --------- Total Assets $ 524,845 $ 481,001 ========= ========= Deposits $ 352,230 $ 320,059 FHLB advances 108,000 100,000 Other liabilities 19,716 18,850 --------- --------- Total liabilities $ 479,946 $ 438,909 Stockholder's equity 44,899 42,092 --------- --------- Total liabilities and stockholder equity $ 524,845 $ 481,001 ========= ========= Book value per share $ 16.30 $ 15.17 ========= ========= Non performing assets $ 2,748 $ 722 ========= =========