Central Pacific Financial Corp. Reports $20.8 Million Third Quarter Earnings And Increases Cash Dividend

HONOLULU, Oct. 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Central Pacific Financial Corp. (NYSE: CPF) (the "Company"), parent company of Central Pacific Bank (the "Bank"), today reported net income in the third quarter of 2021 of $20.8 million, or fully diluted earnings per share ("EPS") of $0.74, compared to net income in the third quarter of 2020 of $6.9 million, or EPS of $0.24, and net income in the second quarter of 2021 of $18.7 million, or EPS of $0.66.

"We are very pleased with our third quarter results which were driven by the investments in talent, technology and infrastructure we have made over the last two years," said Paul Yonamine, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our results include solid core loan and deposit growth, as well as an increase in net interest margin. We continue to be highly focused on digital innovation and we believe our upcoming new offerings will further position us as a leader in our market."

"While we grow and innovate, we remain committed to maintaining our robust capital, liquidity and asset quality position. Additionally, we remain steadfast in our dedication to support our community's needs as we rebound from the pandemic," said Catherine Ngo, President.

On October 26, 2021, the Company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.25 per share on its outstanding common shares. This represents a 4.2% increase from the dividend paid of $0.24 per share in the third quarter of 2021 and will be payable on December 15, 2021 to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 30, 2021.

During the third quarter of 2021, the Company repurchased 234,700 shares of common stock, at a total cost of $5.9 million, or an average cost per share of $25.12. The Company's remaining repurchase authority under its common stock repurchase program at September 30, 2021 is $14.8 million. During the nine months ended September 30, 2021, the Company returned $30.2 million in capital to its shareholders through cash dividends and share repurchases.

Earnings Highlights
Net interest income for the third quarter of 2021 was $56.1 million, compared to $49.1 million in the year-ago quarter and $52.1 million in the previous quarter. Net interest margin for the third quarter of 2021 was 3.31%, compared to 3.19% in the year-ago quarter and 3.16% in the previous quarter. The sequential quarter increase in net interest margin and net interest income is primarily due to higher average balances and yields earned on investment securities, combined with higher interest income on loans which included an increase in loan fees on PPP loans. Net interest income for the third quarter of 2021 included $8.6 million in net interest income and loan fees on PPP loans, compared to $7.9 million in the previous quarter. Net deferred fees on PPP loans totaled $7.9 million at September 30, 2021, compared to $15.9 million at June 30, 2021, respectively. Additional information on average balances, interest income and expenses and yields and rates is presented in Tables 4 and 5.

In the third quarter of 2021, the Company recorded a credit to the provision for credit losses of $2.6 million, compared to a provision of $14.9 million in the year-ago quarter and a credit to the provision of $3.4 million in the previous quarter. The credit to the provision for credit losses in the third quarter of 2021 was driven by continued improvements in the economic forecast and lower net charge-offs as the State of Hawaii continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Other operating income for the third quarter of 2021 totaled $10.3 million, compared to $11.6 million in the year-ago quarter and $10.5 million in the previous quarter. The decrease from the year-ago quarter was primarily due to lower mortgage banking income and lower bank-owned life insurance of $3.0 million and $0.6 million, respectively, partially offset by higher other service charges of $1.6 million. Additional information on other operating income is presented in Table 3.

Other operating expense for the third quarter of 2021 totaled $41.3 million, compared to $36.8 million in the year-ago quarter and $41.4 million in the previous quarter. The increase from the year-ago quarter was primarily due to higher salaries and employee benefits of $3.2 million. Additional information on other operating expense is presented in Table 3.

The efficiency ratio for the third quarter of 2021 was 62.32%, compared to 60.56% in the year-ago quarter and 66.20% in the previous quarter.

The effective tax rate for the third quarter of 2021 was 24.7%, compared to 24.3% in the year-ago quarter and 23.9% in the previous quarter.

Balance Sheet Highlights
Total assets at September 30, 2021 of $7.30 billion increased from $6.65 billion at September 30, 2020, and increased from $7.18 billion at June 30, 2021.

Total loans, net of deferred fees and costs, at September 30, 2021 of $5.05 billion increased from $5.03 billion at September 30, 2020, and decreased from $5.08 billion at June 30, 2021. The sequential quarter decrease in total loans included a net increase in core loans (or non-PPP loans) of $184.4 million, offset by a decrease in PPP loans of $215.9 million due to forgiveness and payments. Loans on forbearance or deferral totaled $1.3 million, or less than 1% of total loans at September 30, 2021. Loans by geographic distribution are summarized in Table 6.

Total deposits at September 30, 2021 of $6.52 billion increased from $5.68 billion at September 30, 2020, and increased from $6.40 billion at June 30, 2021. Core deposits, which include demand deposits, savings and money market deposits and time deposits up to $250,000, totaled $6.09 billion at September 30, 2021, and increased by $266.6 million from June 30, 2021. Non-core deposits decreased by $147.9 million, primarily driven by a decline in government time deposits. The Company's loan-to-deposit ratio was 77.4% at September 30, 2021, compared to 79.4% at June 30, 2021. Core deposit and total deposit balances are summarized in Table 7.

Asset Quality
Nonperforming assets at September 30, 2021 totaled $7.2 million, or 0.10% of total assets, compared to $13.2 million, or 0.20% of total assets at September 30, 2020, and $6.7 million, or 0.09% of total assets at June 30, 2021. Additional information on nonperforming assets, past due and restructured loans is presented in Table 8.

Net charge-offs in the third quarter of 2021 totaled $0.2 million, compared to net charge-offs of $1.3 million in the year-ago quarter, and net charge-offs of $0.8 million in the previous quarter.

The allowance for credit losses, as a percentage of total loans at September 30, 2021 was 1.48%, compared to 1.60% at September 30, 2020 and 1.53% at June 30, 2021. Excluding PPP loans, the allowance for credit losses, as a percentage of core loans at September 30, 2021 was 1.55%, compared to 1.68% at June 30, 2021. Additional information on net charge-offs and recoveries and the allowance for credit losses is presented in Tables 9 and 10.

Capital
Total shareholders' equity was $555.4 million at September 30, 2021, compared to $543.9 million and $552.8 million at September 30, 2020 and June 30, 2021, respectively.

The Company maintained its strong capital position and its capital ratios continue to exceed the levels required to be considered a "well-capitalized" institution for regulatory purposes under Basel III. At September 30, 2021, the Company's leverage capital, tier 1 risk-based capital, total risk-based capital, and common equity tier 1 ratios were 8.5%, 12.2%, 14.6%, and 11.2%, respectively, compared to 8.6%, 12.7%, 14.9%, and 11.6%, respectively, at June 30, 2021.

Executive Promotions
Yesterday, the Company announced the promotion of several key executives effective January 1, 2022. Catherine Ngo, President of the Company and President and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank, will be promoted to Executive Vice Chair of the Boards of Directors of the Company and the Bank; Arnold Martines, currently Executive Vice President and Chief Banking Officer, will be promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company and the Bank; David Morimoto, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer will be promoted to Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Company and the Bank; and finally, Kevin Dahlstrom, presently Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer will be promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of the Company and the Bank. In her new role, Ngo will continue to serve on the Bank's Executive Committee, responsible for the overall management of the Bank. Working together, the team will continue to focus on the bank's principal lines of business: residential, small business, the continued development of the Japanese market as well as the expansion of the Bank's digital product and service offerings. We will also remain active in the commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, and consumer segments with a focus on driving digital solutions to provide an exceptional customer experience.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures|
This press release contains certain references to financial measures that have been adjusted to exclude certain expenses and other specified items. These financial measures differ from comparable measures calculated and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") in that they exclude unusual or non-recurring charges, losses, credits or gains. This press release identifies the specific items excluded from the comparable GAAP financial measure in the calculation of each non-GAAP financial measure. Management believes that financial presentations excluding the impact of these items provide useful supplemental information that is important to a proper understanding of the Company's core business results by investors. These presentations should not be viewed as a substitute for results determined in accordance with GAAP, nor are they necessarily comparable to non-GAAP financial measures presented by other companies.

Conference Call
The Company's management will host a conference call today at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (7:00 a.m. Hawaii Time) to discuss the quarterly results. Individuals are encouraged to listen to the live webcast of the presentation by visiting the investor relations page of the Company's website at http://ir.cpb.bank. Alternatively, investors may participate in the live call by dialing 1-877-505-7644. A playback of the call will be available through November 27, 2021 by dialing 1-877-344-7529 (passcode: 10161136) and on the Company's website. Information which may be discussed in the conference call is provided in an earnings supplement presentation on the Company's website at http://ir.cpb.bank.

About Central Pacific Financial Corp.
Central Pacific Financial Corp. is a Hawaii-based bank holding company with approximately $7.3 billion in assets as of September 30, 2021. Central Pacific Bank, its primary subsidiary, operates 31 branches and 70 ATMs in the state of Hawaii. For additional information, please visit the Company's website at http://www.cpb.bank.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements concerning: projections of revenues, expenses, income or loss, earnings or loss per share, capital expenditures, the payment or nonpayment of dividends, capital position, credit losses, net interest margin or other financial items; statements of plans, objectives and expectations of Central Pacific Financial Corp. or its management or Board of Directors, including those relating to business plans, use of capital resources, products or services and regulatory developments and regulatory actions; statements of future economic performance including anticipated performance results from our business initiatives; or any statements of the assumptions underlying or relating to any of the foregoing. Words such as "believes," "plans," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "forecasts," "hopes," "targeting," "continue," "remain," "will," "should," "estimates," "may" and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements.

While we believe that our forward-looking statements and the assumptions underlying them are reasonably based, such statements and assumptions are by their nature subject to risks and uncertainties, and thus could later prove to be inaccurate or incorrect. Accordingly, actual results could differ materially from those statements or projections for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to: the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic virus on local, national and international economies, including, but not limited to, the adverse impact on tourism and construction in the State of Hawaii, our borrowers, customers, third-party contractors, vendors and employees as well as the effects of government programs and initiatives in response to COVID-19; the impact of our participation in the Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP") and fulfillment of government guarantees on our PPP loans; the increase in inventory or adverse conditions in the real estate market and deterioration in the construction industry; adverse changes in the financial performance and/or condition of our borrowers and, as a result, increased loan delinquency rates, deterioration in asset quality, and losses in our loan portfolio; our ability to successfully implement our business initiatives; the impact of local, national, and international economies and events (including natural disasters such as wildfires, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, tsunamis, storms, earthquakes and pandemic virus and disease, including COVID-19) on the Company's business and operations and on tourism, the military, and other major industries operating within the Hawaii market and any other markets in which the Company does business; deterioration or malaise in domestic economic conditions, including any destabilization in the financial industry and deterioration of the real estate market, as well as the impact of declining levels of consumer and business confidence in the state of the economy in general and in financial institutions in particular; changes in estimates of future reserve requirements based upon the periodic review thereof under relevant regulatory and accounting requirements; the impact of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act"), changes in capital standards, other regulatory reform and federal and state legislation, including but not limited to regulations promulgated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the "CFPB"), government-sponsored enterprise reform, and any related rules and regulations which affect our business operations and competitiveness; the costs and effects of legal and regulatory developments, including legal proceedings or regulatory or other governmental inquiries and proceedings and the resolution thereof, the results of regulatory examinations or reviews and the effect of, and our ability to comply with, any regulatory orders or actions we are or may become subject to; ability to successfully implement our initiatives to lower our efficiency ratio; the effects of and changes in trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws, including the interest rate policies of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the "FRB" or the "Federal Reserve"); inflation, interest rate, securities market and monetary fluctuations, including the anticipated replacement of the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") Index and the impact on our loans and debt which are tied to that index; negative trends in our market capitalization and adverse changes in the price of the Company's common stock; political instability; acts of war or terrorism;  pandemic virus and disease, including COVID-19; changes in consumer spending, borrowings and savings habits; failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures; cybersecurity and data privacy breaches and the consequence therefrom; the ability to address deficiencies in our internal controls over financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures; technological changes and developments; changes in the competitive environment among financial holding companies and other financial service providers; the effect of changes in accounting policies and practices, as may be adopted by the regulatory agencies, as well as the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") and other accounting standard setters and the cost and resources required to implement such changes; our ability to attract and retain key personnel; changes in our personnel, organization, compensation and benefit plans; and our success at managing the risks involved in the foregoing items.

For further information with respect to factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from the expectations or projections stated in the forward-looking statements, please see the Company's publicly available Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including the Company's Form 10-K for the last fiscal year and, in particular, the discussion of "Risk Factors" set forth therein. We urge investors to consider all of these factors carefully in evaluating the forward-looking statements contained in this Form 8-K. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which such statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statements are made, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events except as required by law.