First Bancshares Inc (FBMS) Reports Q3 2023 Earnings and Increases Quarterly Dividend by 4%
Net income available to common shareholders totaled $24.4 million, a 2.4% increase compared to Q2 2023.
Total loans increased by $78.9 million, representing a net growth of 6.3% on an annualized basis.
Annualized net interest margin decreased 29 basis points to 3.47% due to reduced accretion income and increased deposit cost.
The company received a $6.2 million award from the U.S. Treasury Equitable Recovery Program.
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First Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:FBMS) released its earnings report for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023, on October 25, 2023. The company reported a net income available to common shareholders of $24.4 million, marking a 2.4% increase compared to the previous quarter. However, excluding one-time items, net earnings available to common shareholders decreased by $2.8 million or 10.4% to $24.0 million.
Financial Highlights
The company's total loans increased by $78.9 million, representing a net growth of 6.3% on an annualized basis compared to the previous quarter. However, the annualized net interest margin decreased by 29 basis points to 3.47% due to the reduction of accretion income and increased deposit cost. The core net interest margin also decreased by 16 basis points during the quarter.
First Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:FBMS) received a $6.2 million award from the U.S. Treasury Equitable Recovery Program. The company's past dues loans to total loans were $15.7 million or 0.31% for the quarter ending September 30, 2023, compared to $12.6 million, or 0.25% for the quarter ending June 30, 2023.
CEO's Commentary
M. Ray Hoppy Cole, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, The third quarter results demonstrated another solid performance in a difficult operating environment. We were pleased to see positive loan growth of 6.3%, on an annualized basis, for the quarter. Credit metrics remained strong with low past dues and charge-offs with no material increase in non-performing assets. Deposit costs accelerated a bit, increasing 30 basis points to 1.21% but on a relative basis remain well contained with a cycle to date interest bearing beta of 31%."
Balance Sheet and Asset Quality
Consolidated assets increased by $22.2 million to $7.884 billion at the end of September 2023. Loans increased by $78.9 million, or 1.6%, for the quarterly comparison. Nonperforming assets totaled $22.4 million at the end of September 2023, an increase of $0.8 million compared to the end of June 2023.
Dividend Announcement
The company's Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.24 per share, a 4% increase over the previous quarter, to be paid on November 24, 2023, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on November 8, 2023.
For more detailed information, readers are encouraged to view the full earnings report on the company's website.
Explore the complete 8-K earnings release (here) from First Bancshares Inc for further details.
This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
