ELMER BANCORP, INC. (“Elmer Bancorp” or the “Company”) (OTC Pink: ELMA), the parent company of The First National Bank of Elmer (the “Bank”), announces its operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018.
For the three months ended September 30, 2018, Elmer Bancorp reported net income of $494,000, or $0.43 per common share compared to $324,000, or $0.28 per common share for the quarter ended September 30, 2017, an increase of $170,000, or 52.5%. For the nine months ended September 30, 2018 net income totaled $1.419 million, or $1.24 per common share compared to $1.022 million, or $0.89 per common share, an increase of $397,000, or 38.9%.
Net interest income increased $238,000, or 9.3%, and $836,000, or 11.3%, over the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2017, respectively. These increases primarily result from a higher level of loan volume in 2018. This positive impact for both periods was partially offset by an increase in operating expenses primarily related to the Company’s growth and an increase in the provision for loan losses of $44,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 to support the increased loan volume.
Elmer Bancorp’s total assets at September 30, 2018 totaled $285.8 million, an increase of $24.2 million from the September 30, 2017 level of $261.6 million. Total loans increased 9.7%, or $21.5 million, to $243.0 million at September 30, 2018 from $221.5 million at September 30, 2017. Total deposits were $259.3 million at September 30, 2018 compared to $236.0 million at September 30, 2017, an increase of $23.3 million, or 9.9%. Stockholders’ equity totaled $24.7 million at September 30, 2018. The Company and the Bank met all regulatory capital requirements at September 30, 2018.
As previously reported, on October 2, 2018 the Company’s Board of Directors declared a semi-annual cash dividend in the amount of $0.30 per common share payable on November 1, 2018 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on October 16, 2018.
Brian W. Jones, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “We are pleased to report another strong quarter of earnings as we continue to celebrate the Bank’s 115th anniversary. Our nine-month growth and income figures reflect our continued efforts to gain market share. In addition, in continuing to discharge our strategic plan, our recent certificate of deposit promotional campaign added $5.6 million to our deposit totals in the third quarter. Our success is a direct result of our team’s dedication and commitment to our goals and to the communities they serve, making The First National Bank of Elmer “The Bank of Friendly Service”. We are also pleased to announce that the Bank was voted the Reader’s Choice 2018 Best Community Bank by SJBiz Magazine. We want to thank our customers and team members for their continued support and for making this honor possible.”
The First National Bank of Elmer, a nationally chartered bank headquartered in Elmer, New Jersey, has a long history of serving the community since its beginnings in 1903. We are a community bank focused on providing deposit and loan products to retail customers and to small and mid-sized businesses from our six full service branch offices located in Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem Counties, New Jersey, including our main office located at 10 South Main Street in Elmer, New Jersey. Deposits at The First National Bank of Elmer are insured up to the legally maximum amount by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
For more information about Elmer Bank and its products and services, please visit our website at www.ElmerBank.com or call toll free 1-877-358-8141.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and other statements made from time to time by the Company’s management contain express and implied statements relating to our future financial condition, results of operations, credit quality, corporate objectives, and other financial and business matters, which are considered forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are necessarily speculative and speak only as of the date made, and are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, all of which may change over time. Actual results could differ materially from those expected or implied by such forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties which could cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from such forward-looking statements include economic conditions affecting the financial industry: changes in interest rates and shape of the yield curve, credit risk associated with our lending activities, risks relating to our market area, significant real estate collateral and the real estate market, operating, legal and regulatory risk, fiscal and monetary policy, economic, political and competitive forces affecting our business, our ability to identify and address cyber-security risks, and management’s analysis of these risks and factors being incorrect, and/or the strategies developed to address them being unsuccessful. Any statements made that are not historical facts should be considered forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements or to make any public announcement when we consider forward-looking statements to no longer be accurate, whether as a result of new information of future events, except as may be required by applicable law or regulation.