Jul. 18 at 11:47 AM
$BHLB Berkshire Hills Bancorp reports Q2 operating EPS 55c, consensus 52c
Tangible book value per common share was
$23.18 from
$22.84 at previous quarter end. CEO Nitin Mhatre stated, "Operating income advanced for the second consecutive quarter and we benefited from loan growth, credit quality, and expense management. The consolidation of three branch offices was completed, bringing our branch count to 93, and we remain on target to conclude the pending sale of ten offices in the second half of the year....The margin increase benefited from loan growth and impacts from prior quarter securities sales.
Net interest income increased
$392K linked quarter, following several quarters of decreases. Operating non-interest income increased
$2.8M, primarily due to higher gain on SBA loans. The loan loss provision increased by approximately
$500K, supporting loan growth and increasing the credit loss allowance to 1.22% of total loans. Linked quarter operating expenses decreased
$1.1 million due primarily to lower compensation and occupancy expense. The efficiency ratio improved to 63.4% from 66.3%. Capital ratios remained strong, with the tangible common equity ratio remaining unchanged at 8.2%."
