VALDOSTA, Ga., April 25, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- PAB Bankshares, Inc. (AMEX:PAB), the holding company for The Park Avenue Bank of Valdosta, Georgia, announced preliminary earnings for the first quarter ending March 31, 2003. The Company reported net income of $1.83 million, or $.19 per diluted share, for the quarter, a 5% increase compared to net income of $1.74 million, or $.18 per diluted share, during the first quarter of 2002. Earnings for the quarter were supported by $166,000 in securities gains, after tax. "We are pleased with the results for the quarter. This is a good start for what we foresee to be a challenging year for us," stated Michael E. Ricketson, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Our balance sheet continued to contract during the quarter as opportunities for loan growth were less than expected, and as a result, this level of earnings may be difficult to sustain over the next few quarters," Ricketson added.
The Company's return on assets for the first quarter of 2003 was 1.01% compared to .85% one year ago. The return on equity for the quarter was 10.21% compared to 10.67% one year ago. The Company's net interest margin was 4.15% during the quarter compared to 3.67% one year ago.
At March 31, 2003, the Company's assets totaled $716.8 million, which is a 4% decrease compared to total assets of $747.9 million at the beginning of the quarter. The Company also reported total loans of $547.8 million and total deposits of $587.7 million at quarter end.
The allowance for loan losses was $11.8 million, or 2.15% of total loans, at March 31, 2003 compared to $12.1 million, or 2.18% of total loans, at December 31, 2002. The Company reported total nonperforming loans of $10.3 million, or 1.88% of total loans at March 31, 2003, compared to $10.4 million, or 1.87% of total loans at year end. Net charge-offs amounted to an annualized .25% of average total loans during the quarter compared to 1.06% for the year in 2002.
The Company operates 17 banking offices in Georgia and Florida. The Company's common stock is traded on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol "PAB". More information on the Company and the products and services available through its subsidiary bank is available on the Internet at www.pabbankshares.com.
Certain matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the Company's future performance, asset quality and level of nonperforming assets, which are based upon management's beliefs as well as assumptions made by and data currently available to management. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and a variety of factors could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from the anticipated or expected results expressed in these forward-looking statements. The following list, which is not intended to be an all-encompassing list of risks and uncertainties affecting the Company, summarizes several factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or expected in these forward-looking statements: (1) competitive pressures among depository and other financial institutions may increase significantly; (2) changes in the interest rate environment may reduce margins; (3) general economic conditions may be less favorable than expected, resulting in, among other things, a deterioration in credit quality and/or a reduction in demand for credit; (4) legislative or regulatory changes, including changes in accounting standards, may adversely affect the business in which we are engaged; (5) costs or difficulties related to the integration of our businesses, including our charter consolidations, and our merger partners may be greater than expected; (6) expected cost savings associated with mergers may not be fully realized or realized within the expected time frame; (7) deposit attrition, customer loss or revenue loss following mergers and charter consolidations may be greater than expected; (8) competitors may have greater financial resources and develop products that enable such competitors to compete more successfully than us; (9) adverse changes may occur in the bond and equity markets; and (10) restrictions or conditions imposed by our regulators on our operations may make it more difficult for us to achieve our goals. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise these statements following the date of this press release.
PAB Bankshares, Inc.
Selected Quarterly Financial Data
(In thousands,
except per
share and
other data) 03/31/03 12/31/02 09/30/02 06/30/02 03/31/02
Summary of
Operations:
Interest
income $ 10,417 $ 11,354 $ 11,619 $ 12,116 $ 12,990
Interest
expense 3,593 4,142 4,627 5,150 6,069
--------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net interest
income 6,824 7,212 6,992 6,966 6,921
--------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Provision for
loan losses -- 1,088 513 519 456
Other income 2,161 1,842 2,012 1,973 2,186
Other expense 6,305 6,197 6,107 5,951 6,113
--------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Income before
income tax
expense 2,680 1,769 2,384 2,469 2,538
Income tax
expense 855 511 734 769 800
Net income $ 1,825 $ 1,258 $ 1,650 $ 1,700 $ 1,738
--------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net interest
income on a
tax-equivalent
basis $ 6,867 $ 7,253 $ 7,032 $ 6,993 $ 6,946
Securities
gains
(losses) $ 251 $ 203 $ 30 $ 43 $ (15)
Selected
Average
Balances:
Total assets $ 732,357 $ 749,221 $ 762,315 $ 778,925 $ 829,466
Earning assets 671,526 687,761 700,586 721,231 767,970
Loans 554,638 554,676 569,703 599,539 623,890
Deposits 593,171 607,295 623,374 643,445 692,852
Stockholders'
equity 72,454 70,373 68,804 66,596 66,074
Performance
Ratios:
Return on
average
assets (ROA) 1.01% 0.67% 0.86% 0.88% 0.85%
Return on
average
equity (ROE) 10.21% 7.09% 9.52% 10.24% 10.67%
Net interest
margin 4.15% 4.18% 3.98% 3.89% 3.67%
Efficiency
ratio 71.79% 66.14% 67.88% 66.16% 68.02%
Average loans
to average
earning
assets 82.59% 80.65% 81.32% 83.13% 81.24%
Average loans
to average
deposits 93.50% 91.34% 91.39% 93.18% 90.05%
Average equity
to average
assets 9.89% 9.39% 9.03% 8.55% 7.97%
Per Share
Ratios:
Net income -
basic $ 0.19 $ 0.13 $ 0.18 $ 0.18 $ 0.18
Net income -
diluted 0.19 0.13 0.18 0.18 0.18
Dividends
declared 0.03 -- -- -- 0.11
Dividend
payout ratio 15.79% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 61.11%
Book value at
end of
period $ 7.67 $ 7.56 $ 7.43 $ 7.23 $ 6.98
Common Share
Data:
Outstanding
at period
end 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,430,413
Weighted
average
outstanding 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,430,413 9,415,602
Diluted
weighted
average
outstanding 9,476,645 9,462,289 9,453,930 9,454,803 9,466,108
Selected
Period End
Balances:
Total assets $ 716,758 $ 747,911 $ 757,589 $ 764,493 $ 809,241
Earning assets 651,989 683,456 690,974 695,201 747,570
Loans 547,785 555,238 553,458 590,344 607,707
Allowance for
loan losses 11,752 12,097 12,426 15,736 15,723
Deposits 587,719 606,730 615,415 628,927 672,337
Stockholders'
equity 72,365 71,265 70,049 68,143 65,797
Selected Asset
Quality
Factors:
Nonaccrual
loans $ 10,301 $ 10,378 $ 12,100 $ 16,058 $ 13,472
Other
impaired
loans -- -- -- -- --
Loans 90 days
or more past
due and still
accruing -- -- 52 2 94
Other real
estate &
repossessions 1,612 1,284 966 821 727
Asset Quality
Ratios:
Net
charge-offs
to average
loans
(annualized
YTD) 0.25% 1.06% 1.08% 0.33% 0.32%
Nonperforming
loans to
total loans 1.88% 1.87% 2.20% 2.72% 2.23%
Nonperforming
assets to
total assets 1.63% 1.56% 1.73% 2.21% 1.77%
Allowance for
loan losses
to total
loans 2.15% 2.18% 2.25% 2.67% 2.59%
Allowance for
loan losses
to
nonperforming
loans 114.09% 116.56% 102.25% 97.99% 115.90%