BKU - BankUnited Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2024 Results

BankUnited, Inc. (the “Company”) (NYSE: BKU) today announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

"This was an outstanding quarter. Margin expanded, the cost of deposits declined, non-interest bearing deposits grew by over $800 million and we saw good growth in the core commercial loan portfolio segments," said Rajinder Singh, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2024, the Company reported net income of $53.7 million, or $0.72 per diluted share, compared to $48.0 million, or $0.64 per diluted share, for the immediately preceding quarter ended March 31, 2024 and $58.0 million, or $0.78 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2023. For the six months ended June 30, 2024, the Company reported net income of $101.7 million, or $1.36 per diluted share compared to $110.9 million, or $1.48 per diluted share for the six months ended June 30, 2023.

Quarterly Highlights

We continued to execute on our strategic priorities this quarter:

• The net interest margin, calculated on a tax-equivalent basis, expanded by 0.15%, to 2.72% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 from 2.57% for the immediately preceding quarter.

• The average cost of total deposits declined by 0.09% to 3.09% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 from 3.18% for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. The spot APY of total deposits declined to 3.09% at June 30, 2024 from 3.17% at March 31, 2024. The spot APY of interest bearing deposits was stable at 4.29% at both June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024.

• Non-brokered deposits grew by $1.3 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 while total deposits grew by $736 million. Non-interest bearing demand deposits grew by $826 million, to 29% of total deposits at June 30, 2024, up from 27% at March 31, 2024. Average non-interest bearing demand deposits grew by $888 million for the quarter. For the first six months of 2024, non-interest bearing demand deposits grew by $1.2 billion.

• Wholesale funding continued to decline; in total, FHLB advances and brokered deposits were down by $1.2 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

• Total loans grew by $402 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The core C&I and commercial real estate portfolios grew by $589 million and mortgage warehouse grew by $83 million. Consistent with our strategic objectives, the residential loan portfolio declined by $212 million; franchise, equipment and municipal finance declined by a total of $57 million.

• The loan to deposit ratio declined to 88.7% at June 30, 2024, from 89.6% at March 31, 2024.

• Credit trends remain largely favorable although we are seeing some expected normalization. The annualized net charge-off ratio for the six months ended June 30, 2024 was 0.12%. The NPA ratio at June 30, 2024 was 0.50%, including 0.11% related to the guaranteed portion of non-accrual SBA loans, compared to 0.34%, including 0.11% related to the guaranteed portion of non-accrual SBA loans at March 31, 2024. The NPA ratio remains below pre-pandemic levels.

• The ratio of the ACL to total loans increased to 0.92% at June 30, 2024; the ratio of the ACL to non-performing loans was 130.12%. The ACL to loans ratio for commercial portfolio sub-segments including C&I, CRE, franchise finance and equipment finance was 1.42% at June 30, 2024 and the ACL to loans ratio for CRE office loans was 2.47%.

• Our commercial real estate exposure is modest, totaling 24% of loans and 165% of the Bank's total risk based capital at June 30, 2024. By comparison, based on call report data as of March 31, 2024 (the most recent date available) for banks with between $10 billion and $100 billion in assets, the median level of CRE to total loans was 35% and the median level of CRE to total risk based capital was 222%.

• At June 30, 2024, the weighted average LTV of the CRE portfolio was 56.0%, the weighted average DSCR was 1.77, 56% of the portfolio was collateralized by properties located in Florida and 27% was collateralized by properties located in the New York tri-state area. For the office sub-segment, the weighted average LTV was 65.8%, the weighted average DSCR was 1.59, 58% was collateralized by properties in Florida, substantially all of which was suburban, and 24% was collateralized by properties located in the New York tri-state area.

• Liquidity remains ample. Total same day available liquidity was $14.9 billion, the available liquidity to uninsured, uncollateralized deposits ratio was 139% and an estimated 61% of our deposits were insured or collateralized at June 30, 2024.

• Our capital position is robust. At June 30, 2024, CET1 was 11.6% at a consolidated level. Pro-forma CET1, including accumulated other comprehensive income, was 10.4% at June 30, 2024. The ratio of tangible common equity to tangible assets increased to 7.4% at June 30, 2024.

• The net unrealized pre-tax loss on the available for sale ("AFS") securities portfolio continued to improve, declining by $36 million, to 5% of amortized cost, for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The duration of our AFS securities portfolio remained short, at 1.82 as of June 30, 2024. Held to maturity securities were not significant.

• Book value and tangible book value per common share continued to grow, to $36.11 and $35.07, respectively, at June 30, 2024, compared to $35.31 and $34.27, respectively, at March 31, 2024, and $33.94 and $32.90, respectively, one year ago.

Loans

Loan portfolio composition at the dates indicated follows (dollars in thousands):

For the quarter ended June 30, 2024, total loans grew by $402 million. The core C&I and CRE portfolio sub-segments grew by $589 million and MWL grew by $83 million. Consistent with our balance sheet strategy, residential loans declined by $212 million; franchise, equipment, and municipal finance declined by an aggregate $57 million.

Asset Quality and the ACL

The following table presents the ACL and related ACL coverage ratios at the dates indicated as well as net charge-off rates for the periods ended June 30, 2024, March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 (dollars in thousands):

The ACL at June 30, 2024 represents management's estimate of lifetime expected credit losses given an assessment of historical data, current conditions, and a reasonable and supportable economic forecast as of the balance sheet date. For the quarter ended June 30, 2024, the provision for credit losses, including both funded and unfunded loan commitments, was $19.5 million, compared to $15.3 million for the immediately preceding quarter ended March 31, 2024. Significant factors impacting the provision for credit losses for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 were new loan production, risk rating migration and changes in portfolio characteristics and an increase in certain specific reserves.

The following table summarizes the activity in the ACL for the periods indicated (in thousands):

The following table presents criticized and classified commercial loans at the dates indicated (in thousands):

Total criticized and classified commercial loans declined by $52 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. Criticized and classified CRE loans increased by $69 million, the majority of this in the office category, more than offset by declines of $121 million in other commercial categories. As expected in the current environment, there has been some further risk rating migration within the criticized and classified population, primarily within the CRE office category. Rent abatement periods, delays in completing build-out of leased space and in some cases lower occupancy levels contributed to risk rating migration in the office portfolio.

NPAs remain below pre-pandemic levels, although increasing to $176.0 million at June 30, 2024 from $118.9 million at March 31, 2024. Non-performing loans totaled $173.5 million or 0.70% of total loans at June 30, 2024, compared to $115.8 million or 0.48% of total loans at March 31, 2024. Non-performing loans included $39.0 million and $40.0 million of the guaranteed portion of SBA loans on non-accrual status, representing 0.16% of total loans at both June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024. The $59 million increase in non-performing loans for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 included $50 million of office exposure.

Net Interest Income

Net interest income for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 was $226.0 million, compared to $214.9 million for the immediately preceding quarter ended March 31, 2024. Interest income increased by $1.8 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 compared to the immediately preceding quarter, while interest expense decreased by $9.3 million.

The Company’s net interest margin, calculated on a tax-equivalent basis, increased by 0.15% to 2.72% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, from 2.57% for the immediately preceding quarter ended March 31, 2024. Factors impacting the net interest margin for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 were:

• Average non-interest bearing demand deposits increased by $888 million, to 27.5% of average total deposits for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 from 24.7% for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, positively impacting the margin.

• The tax-equivalent yield on loans increased to 5.85% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, from 5.78% for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. This increase reflects the origination of new loans at higher rates, paydowns of lower rate loans and balance sheet repositioning.

• The average cost of interest bearing deposits increased this quarter, but at a declining rate, to 4.26% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 from 4.21% for the quarter ended March 31, 2024.

• The average rate paid on FHLB advances increased to 4.28% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 from 4.18% for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, reflecting maturities of cash flow hedges.

Non-interest income

Non-interest income totaled $24.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, compared to $26.9 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. The $5.8 million decline in lease financing income quarter over quarter was attributable to both lower residual income and the lower balance of operating lease equipment. There was a corresponding decline in depreciation of operating lease equipment. The $3.9 million increase in "other non-interest income" reflected increases in revenue from our customer derivative business and higher loan related and syndication fees.

Earnings Conference Call and Presentation

A conference call to discuss quarterly results will be held at 9:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, July 18, 2024 with Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Rajinder P. Singh, Chief Financial Officer Leslie N. Lunak and Chief Operating Officer Thomas M. Cornish.

The earnings release and slides with supplemental information relating to the release will be available on the Investor Relations page under About Us on www.bankunited.com prior to the call. Due to recent demand for conference call services, participants are encouraged to listen to the call via a live Internet webcast at https://ir.bankunited.com . To participate by telephone, participants will receive dial-in information and a unique PIN number upon completion of registration at https://register.vevent.com/register/BI3a7df9cdebad462ba05970d7dc7dba95 . For those unable to join the live event, an archived webcast will be available on the Investor Relations page at https://ir.bankunited.com approximately two hours following the live webcast.

About BankUnited, Inc.

BankUnited, Inc., with total assets of $35.4 billion at June 30, 2024, is the bank holding company of BankUnited, N.A., a national bank headquartered in Miami Lakes, Florida that provides a full range of banking and related services to individual and corporate customers through banking centers located in the state of Florida, the New York metropolitan area and Dallas, Texas, and a comprehensive suite of wholesale products to customers through an Atlanta office focused on the Southeast region. BankUnited also offers certain commercial lending and deposit products through national platforms. For additional information, call (877) 779-2265 or visit www.BankUnited.com .

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that reflect the Company’s current views with respect to, among other things, future events and financial performance. The Company generally identifies forward-looking statements by terminology such as “outlook,” “believes,” “expects,” “potential,” “continues,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “seeks,” “approximately,” “predicts,” “intends,” “plans,” “estimates,” “anticipates,” "forecasts" or the negative version of those words or other comparable words. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on the historical performance of the Company and its subsidiaries or on the Company’s current plans, estimates and expectations. The inclusion of this forward-looking information should not be regarded as a representation by the Company that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated by the Company will be achieved. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties and assumptions, including (without limitation) those relating to the Company’s operations, financial results, financial condition, business prospects, growth strategy and liquidity, including as impacted by external circumstances outside the Company's direct control, such as but not limited to adverse events or conditions impacting the financial services industry. If one or more of these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if the Company’s underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, the Company’s actual results may vary materially from those indicated in these statements. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements. Information on these factors can be found in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and any subsequent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Current Report on Form 8-K, which are available at the SEC’s website ( www.sec.gov ).