Executive Summary The Company’s business philosophy is to operate as a community bank with local decision-making, principally in non-metropolitan markets, providing a broad array of banking and financial services to retail, commercial and municipal customers. The Company’s core operating objectives are: (i) grow the branch network, primarily through a disciplined acquisition strategy, and certain selective de novo expansions, (ii) build high-quality, profitable loan and deposit portfolios using both organic and acquisition strategies, (iii) increase the noninterest income component of total revenues through development of banking-related fee income, growth in existing financial services business units, and the acquisition of additional financial services and banking businesses, and (iv) utilize technology to deliver customer-responsive products and services and to reduce operating costs. Significant factors management reviews to evaluate achievement of the Company’s operating objectives and its operating results and financial condition include, but are not limited to: net income and earnings per share, return on assets and equity, net interest margins, noninterest income, operating expenses, asset quality, loan and deposit growth, capital management, performance of individual banking and financial services units, liquidity and interest rate sensitivity, enhancements to customer products and services, technology enhancements, market share, peer comparisons, and the performance of acquisition and integration activities. On June 1, 2007, the Company completed its acquisition of TLNB Financial Corporation, parent company of Tupper Lake National Bank (TLNB), in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $17.6 million. Based in Tupper Lake, NY, TLNB operated five branches in the northeastern New York State cities of Tupper Lake, Plattsburgh and Saranac Lake, as well as an insurance subsidiary, TLNB Insurance Agency, Inc. On a consolidated basis, TLNB had approximately $100 million in assets and $87 million of deposits. On May 18, 2007, Benefit Plans Administrative Services, Inc. (BPAS) completed its acquisition of Hand Benefits & Trust, Inc. (HBT) in an all cash transaction. HBT is a Houston, Texas based provider of employee benefit plan administration and trust services. The Company completed two acquisitions in 2006: (1) in August, the Company acquired ES&L Bancorp (Elmira), the parent company of Elmira Savings and Loan, FA, a federally chartered thrift based in Elmira, NY with two branches and approximately $210 million in assets; and (2) in December, the Company acquired ONB Corporation (ONB), the parent company of Ontario National Bank, a federally chartered national bank based in Clifton Springs, NY with four branches and $95 million in assets. Second quarter and June year-to-date (YTD) earnings per share were $0.34 and $0.66, respectively, an increase of $0.01 and $0.02 as compared to the respective prior year periods. The increase was driven by increased income on loans and investments, a 22% increase in noninterest income and favorable asset quality results, These were partially offset by higher cost of funds and higher operating expenses. Cash earnings per share (which excludes the after-tax effect of the amortization of intangibles assets and acquisition-related market value adjustments) were $0.39 versus $0.37 for the prior year’s second quarter and $0.36 for the first quarter of 2007. Asset quality continued to improve in the second quarter of 2007 in comparison to the first quarter of 2007 and the same period last year, with reductions in the net charge-off, nonperforming loan and total delinquent loan ratios. The Company experienced year-over-year loan growth in all portfolios: consumer installment, consumer mortgage and business lending, due to organic growth and the acquisition of TLNB, Elmira and ONB. The size of the investment portfolio increased from both the prior year-end and the second quarter of 2006, principally due to higher short-term invested cash equivalents, which were up $98.8 million from June 30, 2006. Average deposits increased in the second quarter of 2007 as compared to both the first quarter of 2007 and the second quarter of 2006, due to organic growth and the TLNB, Elmira and ONB acquisitions. External borrowings were down from the end of December 2006 and included the early redemption of $30 million of fixed-rate trust preferred securities early in the first quarter of 2007. Net Income and Profitability As shown in Table 2, earnings per share for the second quarter and June YTD of $0.34 and $0.66, respectively, were $0.01 and $0.02 higher than the EPS generated in the same periods of last year. Net income for the quarter of $10.4 million was up 4.8% over the second quarter of 2006 and net income of $20.0 million for the first six months of 2007 increased 3.5% from the amount earned in the first six months of 2006. As compared to the first quarter of 2007, net income increased $0.7 million or 7.3%, and earnings per share increased $0.02 or 6.3%. Second quarter net interest income of $33.3 million was down $0.3 million or 0.8% from the comparable prior year period, while net interest income for the first six months of 2007 decreased $0.6 million or 0.9% over the first half of 2006. The provision for loan losses decreased $1.3 million as compared to the second quarter of 2006 and decreased $3.3 million for the first six months of 2007 as compared to 2006 as a result of favorable and improved asset quality attributes. Second quarter noninterest income, excluding securities losses, was $15.0 million, up $2.7 million or 22% from the second quarter of 2006, while YTD noninterest income of $28.5 million increased $3.6 million or 15% from the prior year level. Operating expenses of $34.1 million for the quarter and $68.1 million for the first six months of 2007 were up $2.9 million or 9.4% and $5.4 million or 8.6%, respectively, from the comparable prior year |