Monday, April 28, 2008
Company Press Release
Source: Salisbury Bancorp, Inc.
Salisbury Contact: John F. Perotti - Chairman & CEO
860-435-9801 or jp@salisburybank.com
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SALISBURY BANCORP, INC. ANNOUNCES FIRST QUARTER 2008 EARNINGS
Lakeville, Connecticut, April 28, 2008/PRNewswire....Salisbury Bancorp, Inc.
(the "Company"), (AMEX:SAL) the holding company for Salisbury Bank and Trust
Company announced today that net income for the first quarter of 2008 totaled
$1,080,934 which represents earnings per average share outstanding of $.64. This
compares to net income of $934,243 or $.55 per average share outstanding for the
first quarter of 2007. Total interest income increased 3.6% while total interest
expense decreased 2% during the period. Noninterest income increased 27.4%. The
Trust and Wealth Advisory Services division contributed $600,000, which is an
increase of 13.2% over the previous period. Income from gains in securities
transactions increased to $317,970 from $117,064 the previous period.
Noninterest expense increased 10%, primarily the result of growth and new
marketing strategies.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John F. Perotti commented, "I am pleased to
report continuing growth and profitability from our core business initiatives.
Total net loans, including loans held-for-sale, have increased by 12.2% to
$276,220,839. Non-performing assets totaled .22% of total assets and net
charge-offs totaled less than $1,000 for the period ended March 31, 2008. The
portfolio does not include any sub-prime loans and the allowance for loan losses
is .91% of total loans outstanding. Total deposits have increased 10.4% to
$336,595,446. Total assets have increased 9.7% to $472,794,810."
Mr. Perotti further commented, "The Bank's investment portfolio has increased to
$148,233,807 and continues to be of very high quality providing good monthly
cash flow and a return that places the bank in the top quartile of Connecticut
banks. The portfolio has no sub-prime collateral or collateralized debt
obligations in any of its securities. We continue to only originate loans and
purchase investments for our portfolio which we are comfortable holding on our
balance sheet from a safety and quality perspective."
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Quarter Ended
March 31,
2008 2007
(unaudited)
Total interest and dividend
income $6,667,897 $6,437,016
Total interest expense 3,008,390 3,070,603
Total net interest and dividend
income 3,659,507 3,366,413
Provision for loan loss 60,000 0
Trust and wealth advisory services 600,000 530,000
Gains on sales of available-for-sale
securities, net 317,970 117,064
Other noninterest income 514,681 477,327
Other noninterest expense 3,649,996 3,319,467
Income before income taxes 1,382,162 1,171,337
Income tax expense 301,228 237,094
Net income $1,080,934 $ 934,243
Earnings per average outstanding
share $ .64 $ .55
Previously, the Directors of Salisbury Bancorp, Inc. declared a first quarter
dividend of $.28 per common share outstanding. This compares to a $.27 per share
cash dividend that was declared during the first quarter of 2007. The $.28 per
share dividend is payable on April 28, 2008 to shareholders of record as of
March 28, 2008.
Salisbury Bancorp, Inc.'s sole subsidiary, Salisbury Bank and Trust Company, is
a Connecticut chartered commercial bank. The Company has assets in excess of
$470 million and capital in excess of $44 million and serves the communities of
northwestern Connecticut and proximate communities in New York and
Massachusetts, which it has done for approximately 150 years. Salisbury Bank and
Trust Company is headquartered in Lakeville, Connecticut and operates full
service branches in Canaan, Salisbury and Sharon, Connecticut, South Egremont
and Sheffield, Massachusetts, and Dover Plains, New York. The Bank offers a full
complement of consumer and business banking products and services as well as
trust and wealth advisory services.
Statements contained in this news release contain forward looking statements
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These statements are based on the beliefs and expectations of management as well
as the assumptions made using information currently available to management.
Since these statements reflect the views of management concerning future events,
these statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including among
others: changes in market interest rates and general and regional economic
conditions; changes in government regulations; changes in accounting principles;
and the quality or composition of the loan and investment portfolios and other
factors that may be described in the Company's quarterly reports on Form 10-Q
and its annual report on Form 10-K, each filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, which are available at the Securities and Exchange Commission's
internet website (www.sec.gov) and to which reference is hereby made. Therefore,
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actual future results may differ significantly from results discussed in the
forward looking statements.
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