Sterling Bank Reports Third Quarter Earnings MOUNT LAUREL, N.J.,
Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sterling Bank, , today reported a
43.8% increase in income before taxes for the nine month period
ending on September 30, 2003, amounting to $558,000, as compared to
income before taxes of $388,000 for the same period of 2002. Total
assets expanded to $216,907,000, an increase of 7.4% over total
assets of $201,906,000 as of December 31, 2002. For the nine months
ended September 30, 2003, net income totaled $340,000, compared to
$309,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2002. Increased
net income for the first nine months of 2003 was attributable
primarily to an increase in net interest income of $425,000 and an
increase in non-interest income of $124,000, partially offset by an
increase in non-interest expenses of $356,000 and an increase in
tax expense of $139,000. Net interest income for the nine months
ended September 30, 2003 totaled $5,726,000, an increase of 8.0%
over $5,301,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2002,
resulting from an increase in interest income of $141,000 and a
decrease in interest expense of $284,000 for the nine-month period
ended September 30, 2003, compared to the same period in 2002.
Non-interest income increased $124,000 or 21.1% for the nine months
ended September 30, 2003 to $713,000, up from $589,000 for the same
period of 2002, reflecting mainly an increase in miscellaneous
fees. Mortgage origination fees, BOLI income and other fee income
accounted for 90.3% of the increase. The provision for loan losses
was $90,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2003, compared
to $67,000 for the same period in 2002. The increase in the
provision for the 2003 period was due to the higher level of loan
growth. For the nine months ended September 30, 2003, non-interest
expenses increased by $356,000, or 6.6%, to $5,791,000, compared to
$5,435,000 for the same period of 2002. This increase is primarily
attributable to higher compensation expenses of $341,000, or 12.3%,
relating to personnel costs as a result of increased commissions
for the Mortgage Origination Program and the Specialized Lending
Group. Diluted earnings per share for the first nine months of 2003
totaled $0.19, compared to $0.20 per share for the same period of
2002. This decrease in diluted earnings per share is primarily
attributable to an increase in the number of shares outstanding
which resulted from the previously announced completion by the
Bank, during the week ending August 20, 2003, of an underwritten
public offering of a total of 1,150,000 shares of its Common Stock,
at a price of $7.00 per share (the "Stock Offering"). The Bank
received net proceeds from the offering of approximately
$7,237,000. For the three months ended September 30, 2003, net
income totaled $133,000, compared to $166,000 for the three months
ended September 30, 2002. Decreased net income for the three months
ended September 30, 2003 is attributable primarily to an increase
in tax expense of $15,000, an increase in non-interest expenses of
$114,000 and a decrease in non-interest income of $41,000, which
was partially offset by an increase in net interest income of
$137,000. Net interest income for the three months ended September
30, 2003 totaled $1,982,000, an increase of 7.4% over $1,845,000
for the three months ended September 30, 2002. Interest expense
decreased by $141,000, which was partially offset by a decrease in
interest income of $4,000 for the three- month period ended
September 30, 2003, compared to the same period in 2002.
Non-interest income decreased $41,000, or 16.2%, for the three
months ended September 30, 2003 to $212,000, down from $253,000 for
the same period of 2002, reflecting mainly a decrease in gains on
sales of securities of $56,000, from $84,000 to $28,000. This was
partially offset by an increase in miscellaneous fee income of
$13,000, due mainly to an increase in mortgage origination fees.
The provision for loan losses was $30,000 for the three months
ended September 30, 2003 and 2002. For the three months ended
September 30, 2003, non-interest expenses increased by $114,000, or
6.2%, to $1,945,000, compared to $1,831,000 for the same period of
2002. Compensation expenses increased by $98,000, or 10.5%,
relating to personnel costs for staffing increases to support loan
and deposit growth. Diluted earnings per share for the three months
ended September 30, 2003 totaled $0.06, compared to $0.11 per share
for the same period of 2002. This decrease in diluted earnings per
share is due in large part to an increase in the number of shares
outstanding that resulted from the Stock Offering. Total assets
increased to $216,907,000 at September 30, 2003, compared to
$201,906,000 at December 31, 2002, increasing $15,001,000 or 7.4%.
Loans outstanding (including loans held for sale) increased
$11,835,000 or 8.5%. Total deposits increased by $12,501,000 or
6.8%. Shareholders' equity increased by $7,383,000 or 60.3%, driven
by the Stock Offering and net income of $340,000 for the nine
months ended September 30, 2003, and partially offset by a decrease
of $194,000 in accumulated other comprehensive income resulting
from the decline in market value of securities classified as
available-for- sale. The allowance for loan losses was $747,000 at
September 30, 2003 as compared to $662,000 at December 31, 2002.
The ratio of the allowance for loan losses to total loans increased
slightly to .49% at September 30, 2003, from .47% at December 31,
2002. The Bank continues to monitor its allowance for possible loan
losses and will make future additions or reductions in light of the
level of loans in its portfolio and as economic conditions dictate.
The current level of the allowance for loan losses is the result of
management's assessment of the risks within the portfolio based on
the information generated in credit monitoring processes and
activities. Non-performing assets, expressed as a percentage of
total assets, decreased to 0.0% at September 30, 2003, down from
0.03% at December 31, 2002. At September 30, 2003 and December
31,2002, there were no non-accruing loans. Sterling Bank is a
community bank headquartered in Burlington County, New Jersey, with
assets of $216.9 million as of September 30, 2003. Sterling Bank's
main office is located in Mount Laurel, New Jersey and its five
other Community Banking Centers are located in Burlington and
Camden Counties. Sterling began operations in December 1990 with
the purpose of serving consumers and small to medium-sized
businesses in its market area. The Bank's deposits are insured by
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to the applicable
regulatory limits per depositor. Sterling Bank is a member of the
Federal Reserve System. The common stock of Sterling Bank is traded
on the NASDAQ Small Cap Market under the symbol "STNJ".
Forward-Looking Statements Sterling Bank may from time to time make
written or oral "forward-looking statements" including statements
contained in this summary and in other communications by Sterling
Bank, which are made in good faith pursuant to the "safe harbor"
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These forward-looking statements, such as statements of the Bank's
plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions, involve
risks and uncertainties and are subject to change based on various
important factors (some of which are beyond the Bank's control).
The following factors, among others, could cause the Bank's
financial performance to differ materially from the plans,
objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in
such forward-looking statements: the strength of the United States
economy in general and the strength of the local economies in which
the Bank conducts operations; the effects of, and changes in,
trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws, including interest
rate policies of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System, inflation, interest rate, market and monetary fluctuations;
the timely development of and acceptance of new products and
services of the Bank and the perceived overall value of these
products and services by users, including the features, pricing and
quality compared to competitors' products and services; the impact
of changes in financial services' laws and regulations (including
laws concerning taxes, banking, securities and insurance);
technological changes; acquisitions; changes in consumer spending
and saving habits; and the effectiveness of Sterling Bank in
managing the risks involved in the foregoing. Sterling Bank
cautions that the foregoing list of important factors is not
exclusive. Sterling Bank also cautions readers not to place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect
management's analysis only as of the date on which they are given.
The Bank is not obligated to publicly revise or update these
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that
arise after any such date. Readers should carefully review the risk
factors described in other documents the Bank files from time to
time with the Federal Reserve, including the Bank's Offering
Circular dated August 11, 2003, future quarterly reports on Form
10-QSB, future annual reports on Form 10-KSB and any current
reports on Form 8-K. DATASOURCE: Sterling Bank CONTACT: Robert H.
King, President, +1-856-273-5900, , or R. Scott Horner, Executive
Vice President, +1-856-273-5900, , both of Sterling Bank Web site:
http://www.sterlingnj.com/
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