Termination Agreement. On August 14, 2008, Home Federal Bancorp, Inc. of Louisiana, a federally chartered mid-tier holding company (the “Company”), Home Federal Bancorp, Inc. of Louisiana, a Louisiana corporation (“New Holding Company”), Home Federal Mutual Holding Company, a federally chartered mutual holding company (the “MHC”), Home Federal Savings and Loan Association, a federally chartered stock savings association (the “Association”, and collectively with the Company, New Holding Company, the MHC and the Association, the “Home Parties”) and First Louisiana Bancshares, Inc. (“First Louisiana”) entered into a Mutual Termination Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”). Under the terms of the Termination Agreement, the Home Parties and First Louisiana have mutually terminated the Agreement and Plan of Merger (“Merger Agreement”) that the Company, the MHC and First Louisiana previously executed as of December 11, 2007 pursuant to which First Louisiana would merge with and into New Holding Company (the “Merger”). The Merger was being conducted in connection with the second-step conversion of the MHC. The Termination Agreement also provides for a mutual release of claims in connection with the termination of the Merger Agreement. No penalties were incurred by the Home Parties or First Louisiana due to the entry into the Termination Agreement. The Merger Agreement is incorporated herein by reference thereto and was filed as Exhibit 2.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 17, 2007. The Termination Agreement is incorporated herein by reference thereto and is filed as Exhibit 2.2 hereto. Also incorporated herein is the press release announcing the termination of the Merger Agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 99.1 hereto.
Circumstances Surrounding Termination. The completion of the Merger was contingent on the completion of the second-step conversion of the MHC. Market conditions for bank and thrift stocks have changed significantly since entering into the Merger Agreement in December 2007. The ongoing problems in the residential mortgage lending market continued to depress the securities market for most financial institutions which adversely affected New Holding Company’s ability to complete the stock offering at the current pricing and valuation ratios. The subscription offering for shares of New Holding Company common stock being conducted in connection with the second-step conversion of the MHC expired on June 27, 2008. The Home Parties determined to extend the community offering being conducted simultaneously by New Holding Company until August 11, 2007, the maximum amount of time permitted without requiring regulatory approval or re-solicitation of subscribers. As of August 11, 2008, New Holding Company had not received orders for the minimum of the offering range. Taking into consideration many factors, including the impact of the stock offering on the Company’s minority stockholders, the Boards of Directors of the Home Parties determined not to proceed with the stock offering at this time. As a result, the Home Parties’ Boards of Directors concluded that it would be in the best interests of the Home Parties to negotiate the voluntary mutual termination of the Merger Agreement.
Item 8.01 Other Events
On August 14, 2008, the Company issued a press release announcing the termination of the second-step conversion and the Merger Agreement (as discussed in Item 1.02 above). A copy of the press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 to this report and is incorporated herein by reference thereto.