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NEW ENGLAND BANCSHARES, INC.
855 Enfield Street
Enfield, CT 06082
For Immediate Release
CONTACT: Scott D. Nogles, Chief Financial Officer
(860) 253-5200
New England Bancshares, Inc. Announces a 15% Increase in
Net Income for the Quarter Ended December 31, 2009 and a
$1.8 Million Improvement for the Nine Months
ENFIELD, CT, January 20, 2010- New England Bancshares, Inc. (the "Company")
(NASDAQ GM: NEBS), the holding company for New England Bank, reported net income
for the quarter ended December 31, 2009 of $856,000, or $0.14 per diluted share
as compared to $747,000, or $0.13 per diluted share, reported for the same
quarter a year ago. The comparable quarter last year included a $639,000 tax
benefit. Net income for the nine months ended December 31, 2009 totaled
$976,000, or $0.16 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $795,000, or
$0.14 per diluted share, for the same period last year. The increase was
primarily attributable to higher net interest income and higher non-interest
income.
President's Comments:
President and CEO David O'Connor commented, "The banking industry continues to
face challenges. New England Bank has proactively been working through these
challenges and beginning to see the positive results of our hard work. While
many in the industry are abandoning lending, we are focused on growing our loan
portfolio in a safe and sound manner. I am pleased with the performance but we
have more work to do."
Results - Third Quarter, December 31, 2009:
o Net interest income was $5.0 million for the three months ended
December 31, 2009, an increase of $1.0 million, or 25.0%, compared
to the same quarter last year. The Company held higher fed funds
balances at the Federal Reserve earning approximately 0.25% during
the quarter ended December 31, 2009 which compressed net interest
margin. The Company has focused on investing a portion of those
funds into higher yielding loans and investments.
o Non-interest expense for the quarter ended December 31, 2009 was
virtually unchanged from the quarter ended September 30, 2009 as the
Company focused on cost control to enhance profitability and
earnings per share.
o The Company held auction rate securities in three public entities
for which the Company had written-down the investments in the prior
fiscal year. In the current quarter the Company converted these
auction rate securities into the underlying preferred stock and sold
two of the investments and recorded a gain on sale of $376,000.
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o The Company repurchased 198,067 shares of the Company's stock during
the quarter, which was accretive to both book value and earnings per
share.
Results - Nine Months Ended December 31, 2009:
o Between March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2009, assets, net loans and
deposits grew 17.6%, 17.5% and 23.8%, respectively.
o For the nine months ended December 31, 2009 net interest and
dividend income was $13.6 million, up $1.7 million, or 14.5%, from
the net interest and dividend income for the nine months ended
December 31, 2008.
o Nonperforming assets as a percentage of assets declined from 2.1% at
March 31, 2009 to 1.8% at December 31, 2009.
o The provision for loan losses for the nine months ended December 31,
2009 totaled $2.0 million driven primarily by increased
delinquencies and charge-offs.
o The Company recorded $940,000 in FDIC insurance expense in the
current period compared to $205,000 in the prior year period. The
current year period expense includes $313,000 for the special FDIC
assessment.
o The Company recorded approximately $220,000 in merger related
expenses during the nine months ended December 31, 2009; these
expenses are not tax deductible.
o The Company sold Riverside Investments, New England Bank's advisory
and investment services division, during the current period and
recognized a $175,000 gain on sale of the division.
o Capital remains strong with an equity to assets ratio of 10.0%. In
addition New England Bank remains well capitalized with a Tier 1
capital ratio of 7.29%.
Statements contained in this news release, which are not historical facts, are
forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities
Litigation reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to
risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially
from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors, which include, but
are not limited to, factors discussed in documents filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Subject to applicable laws
and regulation, the Company does not undertake - and specifically disclaims any
obligation - to publicly release the results of any revisions which may be made
to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the
date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or
unanticipated events.
New England Bancshares, Inc. is headquartered in Enfield, Connecticut, and
operates New England Bank with fifteen banking centers servicing the communities
of Bristol, Cheshire, East Windsor, Ellington, Enfield, Manchester, Plymouth,
Southington, Suffield, Wallingford and Windsor Locks. For more information
regarding New England Bank's products and services, please visit
www.nebankct.com.
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Selected Financial Highlights
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)
Income Statement Data Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
December 31, December 31,
2009 2008 2009 2008
Net interest and dividend income $5,026 $4,022 $13,574 $11,854
Provision for loan losses 623 565 2,006 872
Non-interest income (charge) 902 438 2,199 (1,089)
Non-interest expense 4,194 3,863 12,675 11,025
Net income (loss) 856 747 976 (795)
Earnings (loss) per share:
Basic $0.14 0.13 $0.16 $(0.14)
Diluted 0.14 0.13 0.16 (0.14)
Dividend per share $0.02 $0.04 $0.06 $0.11
Balance Sheet Data December 31, 2009 March 31, 2009
Total assets $672,443 $571,664
Total loans, net 486,063 413,566
Allowance for loan losses 4,354 6,458
Other real estate owned 1,272 141
Total deposits 519,461 419,436
Repurchase agreements 18,812 12,069
FHLB advances 57,148 66,833
Total equity 67,466 63,954
Book value per share 10.89 10.83
Tangible book value per share 7.92 7.98
Key Ratios Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
December 31, December 31,
2009 2008 2009 2008
Return on average assets 0.49% 0.54% 0.19% (0.20)%
Return on average equity 4.91% 4.58% 1.90% (1.58)%
Net interest margin 3.19% 3.32% 3.03% 3.34%
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