ELMER BANCORP, INC. (“Elmer Bancorp” or the “Company”) (OTC Pink: ELMA), the parent company of The First National Bank of Elmer (the “Bank”), announces its operating results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2018.
For the three months ended December 31, 2018, Elmer Bancorp reported net income of $431,000, or $0.38 per common share compared to $347,000, or $0.30 per common share for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2017, an increase of $84,000, or 24.2%. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2018 net income totaled $1.850 million, or $1.61 per common share compared to $1.369 million, or $1.19 per common share for the full year 2017, an increase of $481,000, or 35.1%.
Net interest income increased $253,000, or 9.7%, and $1.043 million, or 10.2%, over the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2017, respectively. These increases primarily result from a higher level of loan volume in 2018. This positive impact for both periods was partially offset by an increase in operating expenses primarily related to the Company’s growth and a decrease in non-interest income primarily related to fewer gains on the sale of loans. The provision for loan losses was $106,000 lower in the 2018 twelve month period.
Elmer Bancorp’s total assets at December 31, 2018 totaled $282.7 million, an increase of $23.4 million, or 9.0%, from the December 31, 2017 level of $259.3 million. Total gross loans increased 7.3%, or $16.3 million, to $240.2 million at December 31, 2018 from $223.9 million at December 31, 2017. Deposits totaled $255.7 million at December 31, 2018 compared to $233.5 million at December 31, 2017, an increase of $22.2 million, or 9.5%. Stockholders’ equity totaled $25.0 million at December 31, 2018. Book value per common share was $21.83 at December 31, 2018. The Company and the Bank met all regulatory capital requirements at December 31, 2018.
Brian W. Jones, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “As we close out 2018 and our celebration of the Bank’s 115th anniversary of serving the southern New Jersey market, we are pleased to report another strong year of growth and profitability. Our full year growth and net income figures reflect our continued commitment to serve our “hometown” community and to gain market share. Our successes are due to our team’s dedication and commitment to our goals and to the communities they serve. We are also pleased and honored to note that the Bank was voted the Reader’s Choice 2018 Best Community Bank by SJBiz Magazine. We wish to thank our customers and team members for a very successful year, both in terms of profitability and growth and look forward to continued growth in market share and shareholder equity in 2019. On behalf of our entire team, I want to thank our loyal client base for their continued support and wish them a Prosperous New Year.”
The First National Bank of Elmer, a nationally chartered bank headquartered in Elmer, New Jersey, has a long history of serving the community since its beginnings in 1903. We are a community bank focused on providing deposit and loan products to retail customers and to small and mid-sized businesses from our six full service branch offices located in Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem Counties, New Jersey, including our main office located at 10 South Main Street in Elmer, New Jersey. Deposits at The First National Bank of Elmer are insured up to the legally maximum amount by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
For more information about Elmer Bank and its products and services, please visit our website at www.ElmerBank.com or call toll free 1-877-358-8141.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and other statements made from time to time by the Company’s management contain express and implied statements relating to our future financial condition, results of operations, credit quality, corporate objectives, and other financial and business matters, which are considered forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are necessarily speculative and speak only as of the date made, and are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, all of which may change over time. Actual results could differ materially from those expected or implied by such forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties which could cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from such forward-looking statements include economic conditions affecting the financial industry: changes in interest rates and shape of the yield curve, credit risk associated with our lending activities, risks relating to our market area, significant real estate collateral and the real estate market, operating, legal and regulatory risk, fiscal and monetary policy, economic, political and competitive forces affecting our business, our ability to identify and address cyber-security risks, and management’s analysis of these risks and factors being incorrect, and/or the strategies developed to address them being unsuccessful. Any statements made that are not historical facts should be considered forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements or to make any public announcement when we consider forward-looking statements to no longer be accurate, whether as a result of new information of future events, except as may be required by applicable law or regulation.