Exhibit 99.1
CONTACTS: Mary K. Talbot
(401) 245-8819
SLADE'S FERRY BANCORP REPORTS 2007 ANNUAL EARNINGS
SOMERSET, Mass. (JANUARY 29, 2008) -- Slade's Ferry Bancorp (the "Company"),
(NASDAQ Capital Market: SFBC) parent company of Slade's Ferry Trust Company
(the "Bank"), reported net income of $2.8 million, or $0.70 per share (basic
and diluted) for the year ended December 31, 2007, a decrease of 21.8% from net
income for the year ended December 31, 2006, which totaled $3.6 million, or
$0.87 per share (basic and diluted). The decline in net income for the year is
primarily attributable to decreased net interest income and increased operating
expenses due to the Company's proposed merger with Independent Bank Corp.
("Independent"). On October 11, 2007, the Company announced that it had entered
into an Agreement and Plan of Merger with Independent (the parent company of
Rockland Trust Company). The Company's shareholders approved the merger
agreement on January 17, 2008 and the transaction is expected to be completed
on or about March 1, 2008, subject to customary regulatory approvals.
For the three months ended December 31, 2007, net income was $332,000, a
decrease of 68.2% compared to net income for the three months ended December
31, 2006, which totaled $1.0 million. Both basic and diluted earnings per share
were $0.08 and $0.25 for the three months ended December 31, 2007 and 2006,
respectively. The decrease in net income for the three month period is
primarily attributable to increased expenses as a result of increased salary
and benefit costs and due to expenses incurred relating to the proposed merger.
Total interest and dividend income increased from $33.4 million for the year
ended December 31, 2006 to $35.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2007,
an increase of 6.6%, primarily as a result of commercial loan growth. For the
three months ended December 31, 2007, total interest and dividend income was
$9.1 million, compared to $8.8 million for the three months ended December 31,
2006, an increase of 2.8%, also attributable to commercial loan growth.
Total interest expense increased 17.7%, from $15.3 million for the year ended
December 31, 2006 to $18.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2007. Total
interest expense increased 3.0%, from $4.4 million for the three months ended
December 31, 2006 to $4.5 million for the three months ended December 31, 2007.
Net interest and dividend income was $17.5 million for the year ended December
31, 2007, compared to $18.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2006, a
decrease of 2.9%. Net interest and dividend income for the three months ended
December 31, 2007 was $4.5 million, compared to $4.4 million for the three
months ended December 31, 2006, an increase of 2.5%. Given the challenging
interest rate environment, management's strategy has been to utilize
alternative funding sources, including increased Federal Home Loan Bank
borrowings, to fund loan growth. Due to the growth and change in the
composition of the loan portfolio, as well as a slight deterioration of credit
quality, management deemed it prudent to provide $361,000 for loan losses for
the year ended December 31, 2007 as compared to a $39,000 provision for the
year ended December 31, 2006. Due to the continued loan growth and slight
deterioration in
credit quality, the provision for loan losses was $191,000 for the three months
ended December 31, 2007 compared to no provision for the three months ended
December 31, 2006.
Noninterest income increased 23.2% for the year ended December 31, 2007, from
$2.7 million to $3.4 million, due to net gains on the sale of securities of
$516,000 in 2007 as compared to net losses on the sale of securities of
$116,000 in 2006. In 2007, management utilized proceeds from investment sales
and maturities, in addition to increased borrowings, to support loan growth,
while in June 2006, the Bank repositioned its investment portfolio and
recognized net losses on the sale of securities of $150,000 at that time. Non
interest income was $744,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2007 compared
to $767,000 for the comparable quarter in 2006, a decrease of 3.0%.
Non-interest expense increased 7.0% to $15.9 million for the year ended
December 31, 2007 from $14.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2006,
primarily due to increased salary and benefit costs related to the
implementation of certain supplemental retirement plans and stock awards, and
one-time expenses related to the Company's proposed merger with Independent
Bank Corp. (the parent company of Rockland Trust Company) incurred in 2007.
Non-interest expense increased 23.5% to $4.3 million from $3.5 million for the
three months ended December 31, 2007 compared to the same period in 2006, also
related to the aforementioned salary and benefit accruals and one-time merger
expenses.
Total consolidated assets increased 0.4% from $607.8 million at December 31,
2006 to $610.2 million at December 31, 2007. Net loans increased 8.4% from
$422.4 million at December 31, 2006 to $457.8 million at December 31, 2007.
Deposits decreased 7.8%, from $424.0 million at December 31, 2006 to $390.9
million at December 31, 2007. During the same time, the Bank increased its
level of Federal Home Loan Bank advances from $119.1 million at December 31,
2006 to $153.2 million at December 31, 2007, an increase of 28.7%.
Total stockholders' equity increased $683,000 to 51.9 million at December 31,
2007 from $51.2 million at December 31, 2006, primarily as a result of net
income of $2.8 million, an increase in accumulated other comprehensive income
of $719,000, and proceeds from stock issuances of $548,000 due to the exercise
of stock options. These increases were partially offset by the purchase of
treasury shares and shares to fund awards under the Company's equity incentive
plan aggregating $2.3 million and dividends declared of $1.5 million. At
December 31, 2007 and 2006, there were 4,010,333 and 4,102,242 common shares
issued and outstanding, respectively, a decrease of 91,909 shares due primarily
to the repurchase of 121,831 shares of common stock under the Company's stock
repurchase program and the purchase of 12,723 shares for the Company's equity
incentive plan, offset by the issuance of 15,665 shares under the Company's
dividend reinvestment plan, the exercise of 18,980 stock options and the
vesting of 8,000 restricted shares. Book value per share was $12.95 at December
31, 2007 as compared to $12.49 at December 31, 2006. Both the Company and the
Bank maintain capital levels sufficient to be considered "well-capitalized"
under applicable regulatory capital guidelines and requirements.
The Company declared a $0.09 dividend to common shareholders of record on
January 2, 2008, which was paid on January 18, 2008.
Slade's Ferry Bancorp was founded to serve community-banking needs with both
personal and commercial products and services. Traded on the NASDAQ Capital
Market as SFBC, Slade's Ferry Bancorp can also be found on the web at
www.sladesbank.com and in seven Massachusetts communities - Assonet, Fairhaven,
Fall River, New Bedford, Seekonk, Somerset and Swansea.
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements
regarding the strength of the company's capital and asset quality. Other such
statements may be identified by words such as "believes," "will," "expects,"
"project," "may," "developments," "strategic," "launching," "opportunities,"
"anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "targets" and similar
expressions. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and
expectations of Slade's Ferry Bancorp's management and are subject to
significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from
those set forth in the forward-looking statements as a result of numerous
factors.
The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ
materially from the anticipated results or other expectation expressed in our
forward-looking statements: (1) enactment of adverse government regulations (2)
competitive pressures among depository and other financial institutions may
increase significantly and have an effect on pricing, spending, third-party
relationships and revenues; (3) the strength of the United States economy in
general and specifically the strength of the New England economics may be
different than expected, resulting in, among other things, a deterioration in
overall credit quality and borrowers' ability to service and repay loans, or a
reduced demand for credit, including the resultant effect on the Bank's loan
portfolio, levels of charge-offs and non-performing loans and allowance for
loan losses; (4) changes in the interest rate environment may reduce interest
margins and adversely impact net interest income; (5) the impact of the
proposed acquisition of the Company by Independent Bank Corp. and (6) changes
in assumptions used in making such forward-looking statements. Should one or
more of these risks materialize or should underlying beliefs or assumptions
prove incorrect, Slade's Ferry Bancorp's actual results could differ materially
from those discussed. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking
statements attributable to Slade's Ferry Bancorp or any person acting on its
behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements
set forth above. Slade's Ferry Bancorp does not intend or undertake any
obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect circumstances or
events that occur after the date on which the forward-looking statements are
made.
Slade's Ferry Bancorp. and Subsidiary
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited)
December 31,
--------------------
2007 2006
--------------------
Assets (In thousands)
- ------
Cash and due from banks $ 13,326 $ 19,448
Interest-bearing demand deposits with other banks 550 1,007
Federal funds sold - 1,900
-------- --------
Cash and cash equivalents 13,876 22,355
Interest-bearing certificates of deposit with other banks 100 100
Securities available for sale 83,187 105,603
Securities held to maturity 19,770 24,623
Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost 7,701 6,856
Loans, net 457,813 422,370
Premises and equipment, net 7,631 5,587
Goodwill 2,173 2,173
Accrued interest receivable 2,212 2,311
Bank-owned life insurance 12,660 12,317
Other assets 3,046 3,465
-------- --------
$610,169 $607,760
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Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity
- ------------------------------------
Deposits:
Noninterest-bearing $ 73,720 $ 79,101
Interest-bearing 317,193 344,905
-------- --------
Total deposits 390,913 424,006
Short-term borrowings 26,500 -
Long-term borrowings 126,677 119,058
Subordinated debentures 10,310 10,310
Accrued expenses and other liabilities 3,841 3,141
-------- --------
Total liabilities 558,241 556,515
Stockholders' equity:
Common stock 40 41
Additional paid-in capital 30,034 31,444
Retained earnings 22,455 21,111
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) 255 (464)
Unearned compensation (856) (887)
-------- --------
Total stockholders' equity 51,928 51,245
-------- --------
$610,169 $607,760
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Slade's Ferry Bancorp. and Subsidiary
Consolidated Statements of Income
(Unaudited)
Three Months Ended
December 31,
2007 2006
------ ------
(In thousands, except
per share data)
Interest and dividend income:
Interest and fees on loans $7,580 $7,066
Interest and dividends on securities 1,403 1,656
Other interest 81 99
------ ------
Total interest and dividend income 9,064 8,821
Interest expense:
Interest on deposits 2,582 2,741
Interest on Federal Home Loan Bank advances 1,712 1,425
Interest on subordinated debentures 222 217
------ ------
Total interest expense 4,516 4,383
------ ------
Net interest and dividend income 4,548 4,438
Provision for loan losses 191 -
------ ------
Net interest income, after provision for loan losses 4,357 4,438
Noninterest income:
Service charges on deposit accounts 373 362
Gain on sales of available-for-sale securities, net - 35
Other income 371 370
------ ------
Total noninterest income 744 767
Noninterest expense:
Salaries and employee benefits 2,020 1,645
Occupancy and equipment expense 485 488
Merger expense 563 -
Other expense 1,207 1,329
------ ------
Total noninterest expense 4,275 3,462
------ ------
Income before income taxes 826 1,743
Provision for income taxes 494 700
------ ------
Net income $ 332 $1,043
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Earnings per share:
Basic $ 0.08 $ 0.25
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Diluted $ 0.08 $ 0.25
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Slade's Ferry Bancorp. and Subsidiary
Consolidated Statements of Income
(Unaudited)
Year Ended December 31,
2007 2006
------- -------
(In thousands, except
per share data)
Interest and dividend income:
Interest and fees on loans $28,900 $27,263
Interest and dividends on securities 6,196 5,904
Other interest 501 234
------- -------
Total interest and dividend income 35,597 33,401
Interest expense:
Interest on deposits 10,612 9,524
Interest on Federal Home Loan Bank advances 6,574 4,986
Interest on subordinated debentures 864 828
------- -------
Total interest expense 18,050 15,338
------- -------
Net interest and dividend income 17,547 18,063
Provision for loan losses 361 39
------- -------
Net interest income, after provision for loan losses 17,186 18,024
Noninterest income:
Service charges on deposit accounts 1,403 1,394
Gain (loss) on sales of available-for-sale securities, net 516 (116)
Other income 1,464 1,469
------- -------
Total noninterest income 3,383 2,747
Noninterest expense:
Salaries and employee benefits 8,444 8,087
Occupancy and equipment expense 1,982 1,950
Merger expense 563 -
Other expense 4,955 4,866
------- -------
Total noninterest expense 15,944 14,903
------- -------
Income before income taxes 4,625 5,868
Provision for income taxes 1,796 2,249
------- -------
Net income $ 2,829 $ 3,619
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Earnings per share:
Basic $ 0.70 $ 0.87
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Diluted $ 0.70 $ 0.87
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