RALEIGH, N.C., July 27, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Integrated Financial Holdings, Inc. (OTCQX: IFHI) (the “Company” or “IFHI”), the financial holding company for West Town Bank & Trust (the “Bank”), released its financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023. Highlights from the 2023 second quarter results include the following:

• Second quarter net income of $3.6 million, or $1.60 per diluted share compared to second quarter 2022 net income of $1.4 million, or $0.63 per diluted share. Year-to-date net income of $5.9 million or $2.63 per diluted share compared to $5.0 million in net income or $2.22 per diluted share in the prior year.
• Net interest income of $5.5 million for the second quarter of 2023, compared to $5.1 million for the same period in 2022.   For the year, net interest income was $11.2 million compared to $10.4 million for the same six-month period in 2022.
• Return on average assets of 3.05% and 2.57% for the three and six-month periods ending June 30, 2023, compared to 1.29% and 2.29% for the same period in 2022.
• Return on average tangible common equity (a non-GAAP financial measure) of 19.84% and 16.84% for the three and six-month periods ending June 30, 2023, compared to 7.91% and 14.08% for the same period in 2022.

The second quarter of 2023 showed positive results from a continued effort to improve efficiency as strategic decisions were made to wind down West Town Insurance Agency, Inc. and to sell a minority interest in West Town Payments, LLC (“WTP”). The efficiency ratio in the second quarter of 2023 was 61.4% compared to 80.8% for the same period in 2022. In addition, the sale of the Bank’s ownership interest in WTP resulted in a pretax gain of about $366,000, and an exit from the Bank’s hemp-related business line resulted in a pretax gain of about $464,000. The first six months of 2023 reflected a similar positive impact from those strategic decisions. Total noninterest expense was down $3.3 million or 17% from 2022 to 2023 resulting in an efficiency ratio of 65.2% for the six-months ended June 30, 2023, compared to 72.9% for the same period in 2022.

In reflecting on the second quarter of the year, Marc McConnell, President, and CEO of IFHI, stated: “The strong performance in the second quarter is a positive reflection of the resiliency of our organization. Growth across total assets, deposits, and total shareholders’ equity is even more significant in light of the market disruption caused by the failure of three large regional banks during the first half of this year.

Looking inwardly, this quarter realized the gains of our prior cost-containment and operating efficiency measures. Net income increased year over year as did net interest income. Additionally, the Bank’s strong capital position has enabled it to continue to grow its earning asset base, allowing it to realize the benefits of the higher interest rate environment on the asset side of the balance sheet. In right-sizing the Bank and streamlining operational focuses, we believe we are well-positioned to introduce new avenues for continued growth in alignment with our strategic plan. We will continue to leverage the successes of our government-guaranteed lending division to further reinforce our strengths while remaining steadfastly focused on enhancing shareholder value.”

BALANCE SHEET
On June 30, 2023, the Company’s total assets were $482.1 million, net loans held for investment were $319.6 million, loans held for sale (“HFS”) were $33.2 million, total deposits were $379.1 million and total shareholders’ equity attributable to IFHI was $94.4 million. Compared with December 31, 2022, total assets increased $34.2 million or 8%, net loans held for investment increased $24.9 million or 8%, HFS loans decreased $1.1 million or 3%, total deposits increased $66.0 million or 21%, and total shareholders’ equity attributable to IFHI increased $6.9 million or 7%. Cash and cash equivalents increased $8.9 million or 26% since the prior year-end as a result of growth in the deposit side of the Bank. The Bank has continued to see growth in loans held for investment primarily as a result of activity in the Government Guaranteed Lending (“GGL”) type loans.   Noninterest bearing deposits have decreased by $23.9 million or 23% since December 31, 2022, resulting largely from the Company’s decision to discontinue banking two industries the Company had previously targeted.   The increase in total shareholders’ equity since December 31, 2022, was primarily associated with earnings. The market value of the available-for-sale investment portfolio has remained roughly unchanged since year end with the accumulated other comprehensive loss component of equity related to the change in market pricing at $2.3 million at December 31, 2022 and June 30, 2023. The Company does not have any investments in its portfolio treated as held-to-maturity being carried at cost.

CAPITAL AND LIQUIDITY STRENGTH
At June 30, 2023, the regulatory capital ratios of West Town Bank & Trust exceeded the minimum thresholds established for well-capitalized banks under applicable banking regulations.

Primarily as a result of net income, the Company’s book value per common share increased from $38.69 as of December 31, 2022, to $41.90 at June 30, 2023. The Company’s tangible book value per common share (a non-GAAP financial measure) also increased from $30.36 as of December 31, 2022, to $33.68 at June 30, 2023, primarily as a result of net income.

Total deposits increased by $22.8 million in Q2 2023 and by $45.5 million over the past twelve months. The Bank funds its loan growth primarily with a blend of customer deposits and wholesale funding and has a wide variety of customers and industries in its portfolio. The Bank also offers services that provide FDIC coverage for its customers in excess of the $250,000 limit. As of June 30, 2023, the average deposit account size was $94,000, and uninsured deposits excluding those required for debt service were $26.9 million or roughly 7% of total deposits.

The Bank’s primary on-balance sheet liquidity consists of cash and cash equivalents along with unpledged available for sale investment securities, which totaled $60.9 million as of June 30, 2023.   Additionally, the Bank maintains fully collateralized credit facilities with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago (“FHLB”). As of June 30, 2023, the FHLB credit facility totaled $65.0 million with no outstanding balance and all of it available for borrowing. In aggregate, total primary on-balance sheet liquidity and total available borrowing capacity at the FHLB was 467% of the amount of uninsured deposits (excluding those required for debt service) as of June 30, 2023.   Additionally, the Bank’s business model includes the origination and sales of GGL loans, a process which occurs each month and can be accelerated or slowed down based on the Bank’s current funding needs. At June 30, 2023, the Bank had $33.2 million in loans available for sale which could generate additional liquidity as needed.

ASSET QUALITY
The Company’s nonperforming assets to total assets ratio increased from 1.04% at December 31, 2022, to 1.22% at June 30, 2023. Nonaccrual loans at June 30, 2023 increased $1.0 million or 23% as compared to December 31, 2022. The Bank held $315,000 in foreclosed assets as of June 30, 2023, compared to $101,000 at December 31, 2022.  

During the second quarters of 2023 and 2022, the Company recorded provisions for credit losses of $130,000 and $460,000, respectively. The Company recorded $86,000 in net charge-offs during the second quarter of 2023 compared to $279,000 in net recoveries for the same period in 2022. In addition, the Company added $70,000 towards a reserve for unfunded commitments. Set forth in the table below is certain asset quality information as of the dates indicated:

NET INTEREST INCOME AND MARGIN
Net interest income for the three months ended June 30, 2023, increased $389,000 or 8% in comparison to the second quarter of 2022 primarily as a result of an increase in average loans outstanding. Loan yields increased from 6.90% in the second quarter of 2022 to 8.43% for the same period in 2023. The increase in yield from the prior year reflected the impact of 475 basis points of rate increases by the Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) since the beginning of 2022 in response to current economic conditions, as well as a change in loan mix. Overall cost of funds increased from 0.64% in the second quarter of 2022 to 2.70% for the same period in 2023 as average retail certificate of deposit (“CD”) rates trended up, and new CDs were originated at higher market rates. Net interest margin decreased slightly from 5.51% during the three months ended June 30, 2022, to 5.48% for the same period in 2023.  

For the six-months ended June 30, net interest income increased from $10.4 million in 2022 to $11.2 million in 2023. The increase of $821,000 or 8% was due to a combination of increased average loan volume and a slight increase in net interest margin. Average loans increased from $306.8 million for the six-months ended June 30 2022 to $351.5 million for the same period in 2023. Net interest margin during those same periods increased from 5.60% in 2022 to 5.66% in 2023.

NONINTEREST INCOME
Noninterest income for the three months ended June 30, 2023, was $7.8 million compared $6.8 million for the same period in 2022. The increase is primarily attributable to an increase in other noninterest income which increased $1.1 million. The primary drivers of this increase were the sale of the Bank’s interest in WTP as previously mentioned, which resulted in a pretax gain of about $366,000, and an exit from the hemp-related business line resulted in a pretax gain of about $464,000. In addition, increases in the income of Windsor Advantage, LLC (“Windsor”), a subsidiary of the Company, and government lending revenues helped to offset the loss of mortgage revenues, which decreased from $1.1 million in the second quarter of 2022 to none in 2023, as the Company discontinued its mortgage operations in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Specific items to note with respect to the most recently completed quarter include:

• Windsor, which offers an SBA and USDA loan servicing platform, had processing and servicing revenue totaling $2.7 million, an increase of $287,000 or 12% as compared to the $2.4 million in income earned during the same prior-year period.
• Mortgage revenue totaled $1.1 million for the second quarter of 2022 compared to $0 in 2023. Due to the nationwide slowdown in refinancing volume and the impact of a doubling of long-term mortgage rates year-over-year, the Company phased out its mortgage operations by the fourth quarter of 2022.
• Government Guaranteed Lending revenue was $3.6 million in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of $809,000 or 29% in comparison to the $2.8 million of revenues for the same period in 2022.  
  

On a year-to-date basis, noninterest income has decreased $2.7 million or 16%. The decrease is primarily the result of the difference in each period’s mark-to-market income adjustment on the Company’s equity investment in Dogwood State Bank due to successful capital raises for Dogwood in the first quarter of both years. The capital raises helped to establish new market values. The prior year’s first quarter had a positive mark-to-market of $6.0 million compared to $2.0 million for the current year.

NONINTEREST EXPENSE
Noninterest expense for the second quarter of 2023 was $8.2 million, a decrease of $1.5 or 15%, from $9.6 million for the second quarter of 2022. This change was primarily due to a decrease of $892,000 or 14% in compensation expense going from $6.3 million in the second quarter of 2022 down to $5.4 million for the same period in 2023 as the Company continues its efforts to decrease its overhead in light of the changing economic environment. Compensation expense has decreased three straight quarters.

Loan-related expenses, which tend to fluctuate unexpectedly, also decreased by $145,000 or 30% from $491,000 in the second quarter of 2022 to $346,000 for the same period in 2023. Every expense category was down from the second quarter of 2022 to the second quarter of 2023 except occupancy and equipment and merger related expenses, both of which had immaterial increases. The result was significant improvement in the efficiency ratio, which decreased from 80.8% during the second quarter of 2022 to 61.4% for the same period in 2023.  

On a year-to-date basis, noninterest expenses decreased from $20.0 million for the first six months of 2022 to $16.7 million for the same period in 2023, a decrease of $3.3 million or 17%. Compensation expense was the biggest driver in the overall decrease, declining to $11.0 million in the first six-months of 2023 from $13.3 million in the same period in 2022, a decrease of $2.4 million or 18%.

ABOUT INTEGRATED FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
Integrated Financial Holdings, Inc. is a financial holding company based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Company is the holding company for West Town Bank & Trust, an Illinois state-chartered bank. West Town Bank & Trust provides banking services through its full-service office located in the greater Chicago area. The Company is also the parent company of Windsor Advantage, LLC, a loan service provider that offers community banks and credit unions with a comprehensive outsourced U.S. Small Business Association (“SBA”) 7(a) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) lending platform. The Company is registered with and supervised by the Federal Reserve. West Town Bank & Trust’s primary regulators are the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and the FDIC.

For more information, visit https://ifhinc.com/. 

Important Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations, and business of the Company. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on the beliefs and assumptions of the management of the Company and on the information available to management at the time this release was prepared. These statements can be identified by the use of words such as "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," variations of these words, and other similar expressions. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause a difference include, among others: changes in the national and local economies or market conditions; changes in interest rates, deposit flows, loan demand, and asset quality, including real estate and other collateral values; changes in Small Business Administration rules, regulations, or loan products, including the section 7(a) program; changes in other government guaranteed loan programs or our ability to participate in such programs; changes in tax law, including the impact of such changes on our tax assets and liabilities; future governmental shutdowns that may impact revenues associated with our lending and other operations that are dependent on government guaranteed loan programs; changes in banking regulations and accounting principles, policies, or guidelines; the failure of our strategic investments or acquisitions to perform as anticipated and the impact of any impairments to our intangible assets, such as goodwill; the impact of our strategic initiatives on our ability to retain key employees; recent adverse developments in the banking industry highlighted by high-profile bank failures and the potential impact of such developments on customer confidence, liquidity, our strategic initiatives, and regulatory response to these developments; adverse results (including judgments, costs, fines, reputational harm, financial settlements and/or other negative effects) from current or future litigation, regulatory proceedings, investigations, or similar matters, or developments related thereto; and the impact of competition from traditional or new sources, including non-bank financial service providers, such as Fintechs. These, and other factors that may emerge, could cause decisions and actual results to differ materially from current expectations. The Company assumes no obligation to revise, update, or clarify forward-looking statements to reflect events or conditions after the date of this release.   

Contact: Steve Crouse, 919-861-8018

Loan Concentrations

The top ten commercial loan concentrations as of June 30, 2023, were as follows:

Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures