CRANBURY, NJ--(Marketwire - January 30, 2009) - 1ST Constitution Bancorp (
NASDAQ:
FCCY), the
holding company for 1ST Constitution Bank, announced today fourth quarter
and annual results for 2008. Net income for the fourth quarter of 2008 was
$457,000, or $0.11 per diluted share.
Net income for the year ended December 31, 2008 was $2,759,000, or $0.65
per fully diluted share compared to $5,443,000 or $1.29 per fully diluted
share for the year ended December 31, 2007. All per share amounts have
been adjusted to give effect to a five percent stock dividend declared
December 18, 2008, payable on February 2, 2009 to shareholders of record at
the close of business on January 20, 2009.
Net interest income was $16,388,000 for the year ended December 31, 2008
which was approximately 7.8 percent less than the $17,778,000 achieved for
the year ended December 31, 2007. Bolstering earnings for 2008 was the
continued generation of non-interest income, which reached $3,301,000 for
the year, up 29.0 percent from the $2,558,000 reported for the year 2007.
The provision for loan and lease losses for the year ended December 31,
2008 totaled $640,000, compared to $130,000 for the year ended December 31,
2007. Net charge-offs for 2008 were $303,000, compared to net charge-offs
of $10,000 for the year ended December 31, 2007.
At December 31, 2008, the allowance for loan and lease losses was
$3,685,000, or 0.98 percent of total loans, compared to $3,348,000, or 1.14
percent at December 31, 2007. Non-performing assets at December 31, 2008
were $7,649,000, compared to non-performing assets of $4,998,000 at
December 31, 2007. There were no loans greater than 90 days past due and
still accruing as of December 31, 2008 and December 31, 2007.
At December 31, 2008, total assets reached $546.2 million, an increase of
$117.0 million from total assets at December 31, 2007. Deposits at
December 31, 2008 grew to $414.7 million, up from $329.3 million in
deposits at December 31, 2007.
Robert F. Mangano, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "Our
absolute results for the quarter and the full year of 2008 reflected the
recessionary economic climate during the year, and its impact on the
financial and banking industry. During the fourth quarter 1ST
Constitution, as one of the stronger community banks, was chosen by the
U.S. Department of the Treasury to participate in the Treasury's TARP
Capital Purchase Program. We issued $12 million in preferred stock under
the TARP program to strengthen 1ST Constitution's already strong capital
position and provide an additional measure of protection from turbulent
financial markets and particularly the dramatic reduction in the liquidity
of credit markets. Prior to the issuance of the TARP funding, our capital
ratios were consistent with those of a well-capitalized bank, as such
ratios are today, which will assist 1ST Constitution to continue to lend
and help support the economic recovery. As a result of the issuance of the
preferred stock, 1ST Constitution's tier I capital increased from $57.3
million to $72.8 million at December 23, 2008 when the preferred stock was
issued.
"During the fourth quarter, we utilized a portion of the TARP funds to
support our retail and wholesale residential mortgage origination units,
which we believe is consistent with the expectations of the United States
Treasury. We believe the TARP capital, in conjunction with our common
stock, retained earnings and trust preferred securities, provides 1ST
Constitution with a sufficient level of capital to support our lending
activities and to also absorb unforeseen losses during this difficult
economic period."
1ST Constitution Bancorp, through its primary subsidiary, 1ST Constitution
Bank, has total assets of $546.2 million and operates eleven branch banking
offices in Cranbury (2), Fort Lee, Hamilton, Hightstown, Jamesburg,
Montgomery, Perth Amboy, Plainsboro, West Windsor and Princeton, New
Jersey.
1ST Constitution Bancorp is traded on the Nasdaq Global Market under the
trading symbol "FCCY," and can be accessed through the Internet at
www.1STCONSTITUTION.com
The foregoing contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are not
historical facts and include expressions about management's confidence and
strategies and management's expectations about new and existing programs
and products, relationships, opportunities, taxation, technology and market
conditions. These statements may be identified by such forward-looking
terminology as "expect," "look," "believe," "anticipate," "may," "will," or
similar statements or variations of such terms. Actual results may differ
materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause
results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, changes in the direction of the economy in New
Jersey, the direction of interest rates, effective income tax rates, loan
prepayment assumptions, continued levels of loan quality and origination
volume, continued relationships with major customers including sources for
loans, as well as the effects of general economic conditions and legal and
regulatory barriers and structure. 1ST Constitution assumes no obligation
for updating any such forward-looking statements at any time.
1st Constitution Bancorp
Selected Consolidated Financial Data
($ in thousands except per
share amounts) Three Months Ended 12 Months Ended
December 31, December 31,
2008 2007 2008 2007
---------- ---------- --------- ---------
Income Statement Data:
Interest income $ 7,372 $ 7,708 $ 29,120 $ 30,369
Interest expense 3,186 3,221 12,732 12,591
---------- ---------- --------- ---------
Net interest income 4,186 4,487 16,388 17,778
Provision for loan losses 105 30 640 130
---------- ---------- --------- ---------
Net interest income after
prov.for loan losses 4,081 4,457 15,748 17,648
Non-interest income 734 620 3,301 2,558
Non-interest expense 4,091 3,140 15,051 12,101
---------- ---------- --------- ---------
Income before income taxes 724 1,937 3,998 8,105
Income tax expense 267 674 1,239 2,662
---------- ---------- --------- ---------
Net income $ 457 $ 1,263 $ 2,759 $ 5,443
========== ========== ========= =========
Balance Sheet Data:
Total Assets $ 546,248 $ 429,152
Loans, including loans held
for sale 383,050 305,083
Allowance for possible loan
losses 3,685 3,348
Securities available for
sale 93,477 75,192
Securities held to maturity 36,551 23,512
Deposits 414,685 329,332
Shareholders' Equity 55,685 40,973
Performance Ratios:
Return on average assets 0.56% 1.29%
Return on average equity 6.52% 14.32%
Efficiency ratio 76.4% 59.5%
Net interest margin
(tax-equivalent basis) 3.64% 4.57%
Asset Quality:
Loans past due over 90 days
and still accruing $ 0 $ 0
Nonaccrual loans 3,352 2,037
OREO property 4,297 2,961
Net charge-offs
(recoveries) 303 10
Allowance for loan losses
to total loans 0.98% 1.14%
Nonperforming loans to
total loans 0.89% 0.69%
Per Share Data:
arnings per share (Basic) $ 0.11 $ 0.30 $ 0.66 $ 1.31
Earnings per share (Diluted) $ 0.11 $ 0.30 $ 0.65 $ 1.29
Book value per share (a) $ 10.55 $ 9.77
(a) Excludes amounts and shares related to preferred stock and includes
effect of 5% stock dividend to be paid on February 2, 2009.
Contact Information: CONTACT:
Robert F. Mangano
President & Chief Executive Officer
(609) 655-4500
Joseph M. Reardon
Sr. Vice President & Treasurer
(609) 655-4500