Arrow Reports Solid Fourth Quarter Operating Results and Strong Asset Quality Ratios

GLENS FALLS, N.Y., Jan. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Arrow Financial Corporation (NasdaqGS® – AROW) announced operating results for the three and twelve-month periods ended December 31, 2011. Net income for the fourth quarter of 2011 was $5.4 million, representing diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $.46, as compared to net income of $5.2 million and diluted EPS of $.45 for the fourth quarter of 2010, an increase of $.01 per share, or 2.2%.  For the 2011 year, our net income was $21.93 million, representing diluted EPS of $1.87 as compared to our 2010 net income of $21.89 million which represented diluted EPS of $1.88. The cash dividend paid to shareholders in the fourth quarter of 2011 was $.25 per share, or 3% higher than the cash dividend paid in the fourth quarter of 2010. On September 29, 2011, we distributed a 3% stock dividend.  All per share amounts have been adjusted to reflect the effect of the stock dividend.

Thomas L. Hoy, Chairman, President and CEO stated, "We are pleased to report improved earnings for the fourth quarter while continuing to maintain both strong asset quality and capital adequacy ratios. The improved earnings results included a substantial increase in our noninterest income for the fourth quarter, reflecting primarily our strong growth in insurance commissions and an increase in fee income from fiduciary activities. Furthermore, our key asset quality measurements continue to be excellent. We are pleased with these results during this very challenging low interest rate environment."

Insurance commission income rose from $830 thousand in the fourth quarter of 2010 to nearly $2.1 million in the comparable 2011 quarter, resulting from our acquisitions of two strategically located insurance agencies in 2011. On February 1, 2011, we acquired Upstate Agency and on August 1, 2011, we acquired the McPhillips Insurance Agencies, all of which are longstanding property and casualty insurance agencies with offices located in our service area.

Assets under trust administration and investment management at December 31, 2011 were $973.6 million, down somewhat from the prior year-end balance of $984.4 million. However, income from fiduciary services in the fourth quarter of 2011 increased by $143 thousand, or 10.6%, above the total for the 2010 fourth quarter.

Our key profitability ratios continue to be strong. Annualized return on average assets (ROA) for the 2011 fourth quarter was 1.10%, up from our ROA of 1.04% for the comparable 2010 period.  Annualized return on average equity (ROE) for the 2011 quarter was 12.80%. Although this was down slightly from our ROE of 13.31% for the comparable 2010 period, the decrease was largely the result of the higher capital ratios we maintained in the 2011 three-month period.  

Our asset quality remained strong at December 31, 2011 as measured by our low level of nonperforming assets and very low level of charge-offs. Nonperforming assets of $8.1 million represented only .41% of period-end assets, up from the .26% of assets as of December 31, 2010. Nonperforming assets included $1.4 million in loans that have been recently restructured and are in compliance with modified terms. Net loan losses for the fourth quarter of 2011, expressed as an annualized percentage of average loans outstanding, were .07%, up from .04% of average loans for the 2010 comparable period. These asset quality ratios continue to be significantly better than industry averages.

As a result of our conservative underwriting standards, within the near-term we do not expect to incur significant losses in our residential real estate portfolio, even though some borrowers may be experiencing stress due to the current economic environment. Our allowance for loan losses amounted to $15.0 million at December 31, 2011, which represented 1.33% of loans outstanding, an increase of 5 basis points from our ratio a year ago.

Total assets at December 31, 2011 were $1.963 billion, an increase of $54 million, or 2.85%, from the $1.908 billion balance at December 31, 2010. Our loan portfolio was $1.131 billion, down $14 million, or 1.2%, from the December 31, 2010 level. During 2011, we originated over $75 million of residential real estate loans. However, for interest rate risk management purposes we continued during 2011 to follow the practice we adopted in mid-2010 of selling into the secondary market most of the residential real estate loans we originated, primarily to a government sponsored entity, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Therefore, the outstanding balance for our residential real estate loan portfolio at year-end was actually lower than our year-end balance at December 31, 2010. However, we continued to retain servicing rights on the mortgages that we sold into the secondary market, generating servicing fee income on those loans.  We also experienced a decrease in the volume of new automobile loans in the first six months of 2011, which leveled off and more recently increased in the fourth quarter of 2011.  Overall, for the 2011 calendar year, the outstanding balances in the consumer automobile loan portfolio declined. We did, however, experience modest growth in our commercial loan portfolio, which partially offset decreases in the consumer automobile and residential real estate portfolios.

Similar to many institutions within the banking industry, our net interest income and net interest margin declined as a result of operating in this historically low interest rate environment. Our net interest income in the fourth quarter of 2011, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2010, decreased $418 thousand, or 2.8%.  Our net interest margin fell from 3.30% in the fourth quarter of 2010, to 3.25% for the fourth quarter of 2011. Both our yield on earning assets and the cost of our interest-bearing liabilities decreased significantly from the fourth quarter of 2010 to the fourth quarter of 2011. Our cost of interest-bearing deposits and other borrowings in the fourth quarter 2011 fell by 45 basis points, to an average cost of 1.03% compared to 1.48% in the fourth quarter of 2010, while our yield on earning assets in the fourth quarter of 2011 decreased by  43 basis points from 4.54% in the fourth quarter of 2010 to 4.11%.

Total shareholders' equity reached $166.4 million at period-end, an increase of $14 million, or 9.3%, above the December 31, 2010 balance. Arrow's capital ratios, which were strong to begin 2011, strengthened further during the 2011 calendar year.  Our Tier 1 leverage ratio at the holding company level was 8.95% and our total risk-based capital ratio was 15.96%, up from 8.53% and 15.75% respectively at year-end 2010. The capital ratios of the Company and our subsidiary banks continue to significantly exceed the "well capitalized" regulatory standard, which is the highest category.

Many of our key operating ratios have consistently compared very favorably to our peer group, which we define as all U.S. bank holding companies having $1.0 to $3.0 billion in total assets as identified in the Federal Reserve Bank's "Bank Holding Company Performance Report" (FRB Report). The most current peer data available in the FRB Report is for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2011 in which our return on average equity (ROE) was 13.64%, as compared to 6.37% for our peer group.  Our ratio of nonperforming loans to total loans was .45% as of September 30, 2011 compared to 3.26% for our peer group, while our annualized net loan losses of .04% for the third quarter of 2011 were well below the peer result of .88%.  Our operating results and asset quality ratios have withstood the economic stress of recent years better than most banks in our national peer group.

We continue to believe that our conservative business model which emphasizes a strong capital position, high loan quality, knowledge of our market and responsiveness to our customers has positioned us well for the future. Nonetheless, we, like all banks, face challenges, particularly the threat to earnings posed by the Federal Reserve's determination to maintain interest rates at historically low levels for an extended period of time.

Arrow Financial Corporation is a multi-bank holding company headquartered in Glens Falls, NY serving the financial needs of northeastern New York.  The Company is the parent of Glens Falls National Bank and Trust Company and Saratoga National Bank and Trust Company. Other subsidiaries include North Country Investment Advisers, Inc., three property and casualty insurance agencies: Loomis & LaPann, Inc., Upstate Agency, LLC, and McPhillips Insurance Agency, a division of Glens Falls National Insurance Agencies, LLC, and Capital Financial Group, Inc., an insurance agency specializing in the sale and servicing of group health plans.

The information contained in this News Release may contain statements that are not historical in nature but rather are based on management's beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates and projections about the future.  These statements may be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, involving a degree of uncertainty and attendant risk.  In the case of all forward-looking statements, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what the statements predict or forecast, explicitly or by implication.  The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.  This News Release should be read in conjunction with the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Arrow Financial Corporation