Citizens First Corporation Announces First Quarter 2015 Results and Repurchase of Warrants Issued to US Treasury

BOWLING GREEN, Ky., April 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Citizens First Corporation (NASDAQ: CZFC) today reported results for the quarter ending March 31, 2015, which include the following:

• For the quarter ended March 31, 2015, the Company reported net income of $782,000, or $0.31 per diluted common share. This represents a decrease of $105,000, or $0.04 per diluted common share from the linked quarter ended December 31, 2014 and an increase of $91,000, or $0.04 per diluted common share, from the quarter ended March 31, 2014.
• On April 15, 2015, the Company repurchased the 254,218 warrants issued in 2008 to the US Treasury as part of its participation in the US Treasury's Capital Purchase Program. The repurchase price of the warrants was $1.7 million. On a proforma basis, assuming the repurchase of the warrants as of March 31, 2015, the tangible book value per common share at March 31, 2015 would have been $12.99 rather than the $13.85 reported. Also on a proforma basis, a resulting improvement in diluted earnings per common share of $0.02 would have occurred for the quarter ended March 31, 2015.
• Non-performing assets totaled $1.5 million, or 0.34% of total assets, at March 31, 2015 compared to $2.6 million, or 0.62% of total assets at March 31, 2014, a decrease of $1.1 million. Non-performing assets increased $115,000 from the linked quarter ended December 31, 2014.
• The Company's net interest margin was 3.82% for the quarter ended March 31, 2015 compared to 3.94% for the linked quarter ended December 31, 2014, and 3.81% for the quarter ended March 31, 2014, a decrease of 12 basis points for the linked quarter and an increase of 1 basis point from the prior year. The Company's net interest margin decreased from the linked quarter due to a decline in the yield on loans, which fell to 4.99% for the quarter ended March 31, 2015 compared to 5.06% for the quarter ended December 31, 2014 and 5.14% for the quarter ended March 31, 2014.
• Total loans increased 0.4% to $319.6 million at March 31, 2015 compared to $318.5 million at December 31, 2014. Total deposits increased 6.9% to $365.4 million at March 31, 2015 compared to $341.8 million at December 31, 2014. Todd Kanipe, President & CEO of Citizens First commented, "We are encouraged by the growth on our balance sheet. Overall growth is vital to improve our net interest income while interest rates continue to remain at historically low levels."

First Quarter 2015 Compared to Fourth Quarter 2014

• Net interest income decreased $58,000, or 1.6%, due to a decline in the yield on loans.
• Non-interest income decreased $44,000, or 6.0%, primarily due to a decrease in service charges on deposit accounts of $22,000 and security gains of $21,000.
• Non-interest expense decreased $19,000, or 0.6%, compared to the previous quarter, primarily due to a reduction in core deposit intangible expense of $64,000 partially offset by an increase in personnel expense of $42,000.

First Quarter 2015 Compared to First Quarter 2014

• Net interest income increased $164,000, or 4.7%, as the volume of earning assets increased from the prior year.
• Non-interest income increased $64,000, or 10.2%, primarily due to an increase in service charges on deposit accounts due to the introduction of a new consumer deposit transaction account.
• Non-interest expense increased $141,000, or 4.6%, primarily due to an increase in personnel expenses, primarily as a result of normal salary adjustments.

Balance Sheet at March 31, 2015

• Total assets increased $18.3 million, or 4.4%, from December 31, 2014 to March 31, 2015 due to a growth in loans and federal funds sold. Average assets year-to-date increased 3.4%, or $14.1 million from March 31, 2014. Average interest earning assets year-to-date increased 4.3%, or $16.4 million, from March 31, 2014.
• The allowance for loan losses at March 31, 2015 was $4.9 million, or 1.55% of total loans, compared to $4.9 million, or 1.53% of total loans as of December 31, 2014. The allowance increased slightly as a percentage of total loans due to an increase in outstanding loans for the year as well as continuing low levels of non-performing loans.
• Stockholders' equity increased $903,000, or 2.3%, from December 31, 2014 to March 31, 2015. The tangible common equity ratio declined slightly to 6.39% as of March 31, 2015 compared to 6.45% at December 31, 2014 due to the increase in assets. The tangible book value per common share improved from $13.39 at December 31, 2014, to $13.85 at March 31, 2015. The Company and Citizens First Bank are categorized as "well capitalized" under regulatory guidelines. As a component of new BASEL III capital regulations, Citizens First Bank will "opt-out" of including accumulated other comprehensive income (AOCI) in regulatory capital with the filing of the March 31, 2015 Call Report.

About Citizens First Corporation

Citizens First Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky and established in 1999.  The Company has branch offices located in Barren, Hart, Simpson and Warren Counties in Kentucky, and a loan production office in Williamson County, Tennessee.  Additional information concerning our products and services is available at www.citizensfirstbank.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release relating to Citizens First Corporation's plans, objectives, expectations or future performance are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are based upon the Company's current expectations, but are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially.  Among the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially are economic conditions generally and in the market areas of the Company, a continuation or worsening of the current disruption in credit and other markets, goodwill impairment, overall loan demand, increased competition in the financial services industry which could negatively impact the Company's ability to increase total earning assets, and the retention of key personnel.  Actions by the Department of the Treasury and federal and state bank regulators in response to changing economic conditions, changes in interest rates, loan prepayments by and the financial health of the Company's borrowers, and other factors described in the reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission could also impact current expectations.    

SOURCE Citizens First Corporation

Related Links

http://www.citizensfirstbank.com