FVCBankcorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: FVCB) (the “Company”) today reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2023.
Third Quarter Selected Financial Highlights
- Stellar Credit Quality. Nonperforming loans totaled $1.5 million at September 30, 2023, or 0.07% of total assets, and were comprised solely of residential mortgage loans. Net recoveries of $7 thousand were recorded during the third quarter of 2023. Loans on the Company’s watchlist decreased to $3.0 million during the quarter ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of 70% from the prior quarter end and 79% from December 31, 2022.
- Continued Core Deposit Growth and Reduced Reliance on Wholesale Funds. Wholesale funds at September 30, 2023 decreased $130.8 million during the third quarter as the Company managed a reduction in its reliance on wholesale deposits. Core deposits increased $38.7 million, or 2%, to $1.71 billion, at September 30, 2023 from $1.67 billion at June 30, 2023. Noninterest-bearing deposits decreased $9.9 million during the third quarter of 2023, but increased to 21.4% of total deposits as the Company decreased its wholesale deposits.
- Low Uninsured Deposit Metrics Compared to Total Deposits. As of September 30, 2023, estimated uninsured deposits improved to 31.8% of total deposits from 39.7% at December 31, 2022, when excluding collateralized deposits. The Company has sufficient capital and liquidity resources to satisfy these obligations.
- Diverse Sources of Available Liquidity. At September 30, 2023, the Company’s liquidity position, which includes cash totaling $97.0 million, unencumbered investment securities of $92.5 million, and available unsecured and secured borrowing capacity totaling $802.5 million, was significantly in excess of its estimated uninsured deposits (excluding collateralized deposits) totaling $635.1 million, or 31.8% of total deposits. The Company has access to the Federal Reserve’s Bank Term Funding Program (“BTFP”) but has not drawn on the facility during 2023.
- Strong Well Capitalized Balance Sheet. All of FVCbank’s (the “Bank”) regulatory capital components and ratios are well in excess of thresholds required to be considered "well capitalized" with total risk based capital to risk-weighted assets of 13.93% at September 30, 2023. The tangible common equity ("TCE") to total assets ("TA") ratio for the Bank increased to 9.40% at September 30, 2023, from 9.22% at June 30, 2023. The Bank’s investment securities are classified as available-for-sale, and therefore the decrease in market value of these securities is fully reflected in the TCE/TA ratio.
Net income for the third quarter of 2023 was $4.0 million, or $0.22 diluted earnings per share, compared to $7.0 million, or $0.38 diluted earnings per share, for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2022. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, the Company reported net income of $8.9 million, or $0.49 diluted earnings per share, compared to net income of $20.1 million, or $1.09 diluted earnings per share for the nine months ended September 30, 2022.
On December 15, 2022, the Company announced that the Board of Directors approved a five-for-four split of the Company’s common stock in the form of a 25% stock dividend for shareholders of record on January 9, 2023, payable on January 31, 2023. Earnings per share and all other per share information reflected herein have been adjusted for the five-for-four split of the Company’s common stock for comparative purposes.
Management Comments
David W. Pijor, Esq., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, said:
“The current interest rate environment continues to be challenging as bank funding costs outpace the improved yield of our earning assets. We were pleased with continued growth in our core deposit base as we added new customers and deepened existing customer relationships. While we continue to lend in our marketplace, we are maintaining a disciplined approach on pricing and deposit requirements as well as actively managing our existing loan portfolio resulting in a reduction in total loans for the quarter.
While our credit quality has historically been solid, it further improved for the second consecutive quarter as nonperforming loans were 0.07% to total assets, all of which were residential real estate secured. We continue to lend to well-established and relationship-driven borrowers, supporting our proven track record of low historical credit losses.
We remain committed to deliver banking services that improve our customers’ digital experience. We are enhancing efforts to increase the presence of our brand in the markets we serve. This is made possible by our extraordinary team of bankers who demonstrate dedication and commitment to our strategic objectives every day.”
Statement of Condition
Total assets were $2.31 billion at September 30, 2023 and $2.34 billion at December 31, 2022, a decrease of $38.9 million, or 2%. Total assets increased $100.5 million, or 5%, compared to $2.20 billion at September 30, 2022.
Loans receivable, net of deferred fees, were $1.85 billion at September 30, 2023 and $1.84 billion at December 31, 2022, an increase of $9.1 million, or 0.5%. Compared to September 30, 2022, loans receivable, net of deferred fees, increased $135.0 million, or 8%, from $1.71 billion, year-over-year. During the third quarter of 2023, new commercial loan originations totaled $19.3 million with a weighted average rate of 8.01% and repayments of commercial loans and lines of credit totaled $49.2 million with a weighted average rate of 7.58%. The Company’s warehouse line with Atlantic Coast Mortgage, LLC (“ACM”) decreased $31.8 million and total loans decreased $54.3 million during the third quarter of 2023.
Investment securities were $216.4 million at September 30, 2023, $278.3 million at December 31, 2022, and $282.5 million at September 30, 2022. Investment securities decreased $15.1 million during the quarter ended September 30, 2023, primarily as a result of principal paydowns of $6.0 million, and a $9.0 million increase in the portfolio's unrealized losses. For the year-to-date period ended September 30, 2023, the investment securities portfolio decreased $61.9 million, a result of the sale of $40.3 million of available-for-sale securities in February 2023, principal paydowns of $17.1 million, and an increase in the portfolio's unrealized losses of $4.4 million. The decrease in the market value of the investment securities portfolio was driven by the increasing rate environment that began in 2022 and not a result of credit impairment at September 30, 2023.
Total deposits were $2.00 billion at September 30, 2023, $1.83 billion at December 31, 2022, and $1.89 billion at September 30, 2022. Total deposits increased $165.8 million, or 9%, year-to-date, and increased $106.7 million, or 6%, year-over-year. Noninterest-bearing deposits were $427.0 million at September 30, 2023, or 21.4% of total deposits. At September 30, 2023, core deposits, which exclude wholesale deposits, increased $131.3 million from December 31, 2022, or 8%, and increased $38.7 million, or 2%, from June 30, 2023. As a member of the IntraFi Network, the Bank offers products to its customers who seek to maximize FDIC insurance protection (“reciprocal deposits”). At September 30, 2023, December 31, 2022, and September 30, 2022, reciprocal deposits totaled $312.4 million, $117.6 million, and $167.9 million, respectively, and are considered part of the Company’s core deposit base. Time deposits (which exclude wholesale deposits) increased $121.3 million, or 47%, to $381.8 million at September 30, 2023 from December 31, 2022, and were 22% of core deposits at September 30, 2023, representing new and existing customer deposits as customers were looking to fix interest rates on their deposit balances.
The Company has had consistent core deposit inflows over the last several quarters, including the current quarter, with new non-time deposit accounts totaling $200 million (which includes $7.6 million in new noninterest-bearing deposits) with a weighted average rate of 4.18% compared to $205 million for the second quarter of 2023 with a weighted average rate of 4.13%. Escrow-related deposits increased $21.6 million from June 30, 2023 to September 30, 2023. Deposits from municipalities increased $1.9 million during the third quarter of 2023, which are collateralized by a portion of the Company’s investment securities portfolio. The Company maintains a growing deposit pipeline headed into the fourth quarter of 2023.
Total wholesale funding (which includes wholesale deposits and advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (“FHLB”)) decreased $80.8 million during the third quarter of 2023. Wholesale funding, which totaled $332.5 million at September 30, 2023, carries a weighted average rate of 3.62% including $250 million in pay-fixed/receive-floating interest rate swaps at an average rate of 3.25%. Wholesale deposits decreased $130.8 million to $282.5 million during the third quarter of 2023 and FHLB advances increased $50.0 million from June 30, 2023. These FHLB advances have a weighted average rate of 2.98% as they are hedged with a portion of the above mentioned pay-fixed/receive-floating interest rate swaps.
Shareholders’ equity at September 30, 2023 was $211.2 million, an increase of $8.9 million, or 4%, from December 31, 2022 and an increase of $16.6 million, or 9%, from the year-ago quarter. Year-to-date 2023 earnings contributed $8.9 million to the increase in shareholders’ equity. As a result of the Company’s adoption of Accounting Standards Update 2016-13 (“CECL”) on January 1, 2023, retained earnings decreased $2.8 million. In addition, during the first six months of 2023, the Company repurchased 115,750 of its common shares at an average price of $12.51 (including commissions) in accordance with its approved share repurchase program, reducing shareholders’ equity $1.4 million during 2023. Accumulated other comprehensive loss decreased $1.7 million, which was related to the improvement in other comprehensive income associated with the Company’s cash flow hedges.
Book value per share at September 30, 2023, December 31, 2022, and September 30, 2022 was $11.87, $11.58, and $11.13, respectively. Tangible book value per share (a non-GAAP financial measure which is defined in the tables below) at September 30, 2023, December 31, 2022, and September 30, 2022 was $11.44, $11.14, and $10.68, respectively. Tangible book value per share, excluding accumulated other comprehensive loss (a non-GAAP financial measure which is defined in the tables below), at September 30, 2023, December 31, 2022, and September 30, 2022 was $13.39, $13.23 and $12.94, respectively.
The Bank is well-capitalized at September 30, 2023, with total risk-based capital of 13.93%, common equity tier 1 risk-based capital of 12.92%, and tier 1 leverage ratio of 10.62%.
Asset Quality
The Company adopted CECL on January 1, 2023 in accordance with the required implementation date, and recorded the impact of the adoption to retained earnings, net of deferred income taxes, as required by the accounting standard. Note that prior to the adoption of CECL, the Company utilized an incurred loss model to derive its best estimate of the allowance for credit losses. Reserves for credit losses increased $3.7 million and consisted of increases to the allowance for credit losses on loans as well as the Company's reserve for unfunded commitments (referred to in combination herein as “ACL”). For the most recent quarter and year-to-date 2023, subsequent to the aforementioned adoption, the Company released provisioning for credit losses totaling $729 thousand and increased provisions $132 thousand, respectively, compared to a provision of $365 thousand for the three months ended September 30, 2022 and a provision of $1.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2022. Of the reserves that were released during the third quarter of 2023, $600 thousand came from the allowance for credit losses and $129 thousand from the reserve for unfunded commitments. The ACL to total loans, net of fees, was 1.06% at September 30, 2023, compared to 0.87% at December 31, 2022, 0.89% at September 30, 2022, and 1.03% at January 1, 2023, the day of CECL adoption.
The release of reserves during the third quarter of 2023 was mainly due to the decrease in total loans, which decreased $54.3 million during the third quarter of 2023.
The Company has maintained disciplined credit guidelines during the current rising interest rate environment. The Company proactively monitors the impact of rising interest rates on its adjustable loans as the industry navigates through this economic cycle of increased inflation and higher interest rates. Credit quality metrics improved during the third quarter of 2023 as nonperforming loans and loans 90 days or more past due at September 30, 2023 totaled $1.5 million, or 0.07% of total assets, compared to $4.5 million, or 0.19%, of total assets at December 31, 2022. There were six nonperforming loans at September 30, 2023, all of which were residential real estate secured. The Company had no other real estate owned.
The Company recorded net recoveries of $7 thousand during the third quarter of 2023. The ACL (which includes the reserve for unfunded commitments) at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, was $19.5 million and $16.0 million, respectively. ACL coverage to nonperforming loans increased to 1293% at September 30, 2023, compared to 357% at December 31, 2022 as a result of the Company’s improved credit quality and adoption of CECL.
Commercial real estate and construction loans totaled $1.25 billion, or 68% of total loans, net of fees, at September 30, 2023. The commercial real estate portfolio, including construction loans, is diversified by asset type and geographic concentration. The Company manages this portion of the portfolio in a disciplined manner, and has comprehensive policies to monitor, measure and mitigate its loan concentrations within this portfolio segment, including rigorous credit approval, monitoring and administrative practices. Included in commercial real estate are loans secured by office buildings totaling $95.7 million, or 5% of total loans, and retail shopping centers totaling $267.3 million, or 14% of total loans, at September 30, 2023. Multi-family commercial properties totaled $179.0 million, or 10% of total loans, at September 30, 2023. The following table provides further stratification of these and additional asset classes at September 30, 2023 (dollars in thousands).
| Owner Occupied Commercial Real Estate | Non-Owner Occupied Commercial Real Estate | Construction | |||||||||||||||||
| Asset Class | Average
| Number
| Bank Owned Principal (2) | Average
| Number
| Bank Owned Principal (2) | Top 3 Geographic Concentration | Number
| Bank Owned Principal (2) | Total Bank Owned Principal (2) | % of Total Loans | ||||||||
| Office, Class A | 70% | 6 | $ | 7,580 | 48% | 4 | $ | 3,804 | Counties of Fairfax and Loudoun, Virginia and Montgomery County, Maryland | 1 | $ | 2,836 | $ | 14,220 | |||||
| Office, Class B | 47% | 35 | 13,906 | 47% | 31 | 61,660 | - | - | 75,566 | ||||||||||
| Office, Class C | 49% | 6 | 3,149 | 41% | 8 | 1,974 | 1 | 788 | 5,911 | ||||||||||
| Subtotal | 47 | $ | 24,635 | 43 | $ | 67,438 | 2 | $ | 3,624 | $ | 95,697 | 5% | |||||||
| Retail- Neighorhood/Community Shop | - | $ | - | 44% | 31 | $ | 84,997 | Prince George's County, Maryland, Fairfax County, Virginia and Washington, D.C. | 2 | $ | 10,250 | $ | 95,247 | ||||||
| Retail- Restaurant | 58% | 9 | 8,248 | 45% | 17 | 30,733 | - | - | 38,981 | ||||||||||
| Retail- Single Tenant | 60% | 5 | 2,018 | 40% | 22 | 37,313 | - | - | 39,331 | ||||||||||
| Retail- Anchored,Other | 71% | 1 | 2,060 | 52% | 11 | 39,041 | 1 | 2,315 | 43,416 | ||||||||||
| Retail- Grocery-anchored | 0 | - | 45% | 8 | 49,688 | 1 | 625 | 50,313 | |||||||||||
| Subtotal | 15 | $ | 12,326 | 89 | $ | 241,772 | 4 | $ | 13,190 | $ | 267,288 | 14% | |||||||
| Multi-family, Class A (Market) | - | $ | - | 27% | 1 | $ | - | Washington, D.C., Baltimore City, Maryland and Arlington County, Virginia | 1 | $ | 729 | $ | 729 | ||||||
| Multi-family, Class B (Market) | - | - | 63% | 21 | 78,669 | - | - | 78,669 | |||||||||||
| Multi-family, Class C (Market) | - | - | 57% | 57 | 72,086 | 2 | 6,800 | 78,886 | |||||||||||
| Multi-Family-Affordable Housing | - | - | 53% | 10 | 16,605 | 1 | 4,096 | 20,701 | |||||||||||
| Subtotal | - | $ | - | 89 | $ | 167,360 | 4 | $ | 11,625 | $ | 178,985 | 10% | |||||||
| Industrial | 52% | 44 | $ | 71,761 | 52% | 38 | $ | 133,809 | Prince William County, Virginia, Fairfax County, Virginia and Howard County, Maryland | $ | - | $ | 205,570 | ||||||
| Warehouse | 52% | 14 | 18,914 | 30% | 11 | 11,589 | - | 30,503 | |||||||||||
| Flex | 50% | 15 | 16,170 | 54% | 14 | 56,531 | 2 | - | 72,701 | ||||||||||
| Subtotal | 73 | $ | 106,845 | 63 | $ | 201,929 | 2 | $ | - | 308,774 | 17% | ||||||||
| Hotels | - | $ | - | 44% | 9 | $ | 52,956 | 1 | $ | 6,410 | 59,366 | 3% | |||||||
| Mixed Use | 46% | 11 | $ | 6,804 | 61% | 36 | $ | 62,095 | 1 | $ | 6,824 | $ | 75,723 | 4% | |||||
| Other (including net deferred costs) | $ | 62,199 | $ | 91,367 | $ | 112,886 | $ | 266,452 | 14% | ||||||||||
