HTLF - HBT Financial Inc. Announces First Quarter 2024 Financial Results

First Quarter Highlights

• Net income of $15.3 million , or $0.48 per diluted share; return on average assets (“ROAA”) of 1.23% ; return on average stockholders' equity (“ROAE”) of 12.42% ; and return on average tangible common equity (“ROATCE”) ⁽¹⁾ of 14.83%
• Adjusted net income ⁽¹⁾ of $18.1 million ; or $0.57 per diluted share; adjusted ROAA ⁽¹⁾ of 1.45% ; adjusted ROAE ⁽¹⁾ of 14.72% ; and adjusted ROATCE ⁽¹⁾ of 17.57%
• Asset quality remained strong with nonperforming assets to total assets of 0.20% , close to a historic low
• Net interest margin and net interest margin (tax-equivalent basis) ⁽¹⁾ remained stable at 3.94% and 3.99% , respectively

BLOOMINGTON, Ill., April 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HBT Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: HBT) (the “Company” or “HBT Financial” or “HBT”), the holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company, today reported net income of $15.3 million, or $0.48 diluted earnings per share, for the first quarter of 2024. This compares to net income of $18.4 million, or $0.58 diluted earnings per share, for the fourth quarter of 2023, and net income of $9.2 million, or $0.30 diluted earnings per share, for the first quarter of 2023.

J. Lance Carter, President and Chief Executive Officer of HBT Financial, said, “This has been an excellent start to 2024 as we continue to show the strength of our franchise. Our profitability remained very strong with an adjusted ROAA ⁽¹⁾ of 1.45% and an adjusted ROATCE ⁽¹⁾ of 17.57%. Our net interest margin (tax-equivalent basis) ⁽¹⁾ was stable at 3.99%, as the increase in funding costs has slowed. Deposits, excluding brokered deposits, increased slightly during the quarter while loans had a small decline. The decrease in loans included the payoff of several loans that had interest rates lower than the current yield on cash, so it did not have a material impact on profitability. Credit quality has remained strong, as evidenced by a net recovery for the quarter and nonperforming loans to total assets still being near a historic low. Despite an increase in interest rates having a negative impact on accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) during the quarter, we saw increases to all capital ratios and an increase to tangible book value per share ⁽¹⁾ by $0.29. Tangible book value per share ⁽¹⁾ has now grown by $1.74, or 15.2%, since March 31, 2023.”
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_{⁽¹⁾ See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures.}

Adjusted Net Income

In addition to reporting GAAP results, the Company believes non-GAAP measures such as adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share, which adjust for acquisition expenses, branch closure expenses, gains (losses) on closed branch premises, net earnings (losses) from closed or sold operations, charges related to termination of certain employee benefit plans, realized gains (losses) on sales of securities, and mortgage servicing rights fair value adjustments, provide investors with additional insight into its operational performance. The Company reported adjusted net income of $18.1 million, or $0.57 adjusted diluted earnings per share, for the first quarter of 2024. This compares to adjusted net income of $19.3 million, or $0.60 adjusted diluted earnings per share, for the fourth quarter of 2023, and adjusted net income of $19.9 million, or $0.64 adjusted diluted earnings per share, for the first quarter of 2023 (see “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” tables below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures).

Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin

Net interest income for the first quarter of 2024 was $46.7 million, a decrease of 0.8% from $47.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The slight decrease was primarily attributable to an increase in funding costs, which were partially offset by an increase in asset yields. The increase in asset yields was primarily driven by higher cash balances following the sale of $66.8 million of municipal securities as well as higher loan yields. The book yield of the securities sold was 1.87% and the average life was 6.7 years.

Relative to the first quarter of 2023, net interest income decreased 0.3% from $46.8 million. The slight decrease was primarily attributable to an increase in funding costs, which were mostly offset by higher interest-earning asset balances following the Town and Country Financial Corporation (“Town and Country”) merger, which closed on February 1, 2023, and higher yields on interest-earning assets.

Net interest margin for the first quarter of 2024 was 3.94%, compared to 3.93% for the fourth quarter of 2023, and net interest margin (tax-equivalent basis) ⁽¹⁾ for the first quarter of 2024 was 3.99%, unchanged from the fourth quarter of 2023. Higher yields on interest-earning assets were offset by higher funding costs with the cost of funds increasing to 1.37% for the first quarter of 2024, compared to 1.26% for the fourth quarter of 2023.

Relative to the first quarter of 2023, net interest margin decreased from 4.20% and net interest margin (tax-equivalent basis) ⁽¹⁾ decreased from 4.26%. These decreases were primarily attributable to increases in funding costs outpacing increases in interest-earning asset yields.
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_{⁽¹⁾ See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures.}

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income for the first quarter of 2024 was $5.6 million, a decrease of 38.9% from $9.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The decrease was primarily attributable to $3.4 million in realized losses on the sale of securities during the first quarter of 2024 and $0.6 million of impairment losses on bank premises related to the closure of two branch premises now held for sale. Partially offsetting these losses were changes in the mortgage servicing rights fair value adjustment, with a $0.1 million positive fair value adjustment during the first quarter of 2024 compared to a $1.2 million negative fair value adjustment during the fourth quarter of 2023.

Relative to the first quarter of 2023, noninterest income decreased 24.4% from $7.4 million. The decrease was primarily attributable to the $3.4 million in realized losses on the sales of securities in the first quarter of 2024 compared to $1.0 million in realized losses on the sale of securities in the first quarter of 2023.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense for the first quarter of 2024 was $31.3 million, a 2.9% increase from $30.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase was primarily attributable to a $0.9 million increase in salaries, which was impacted by seasonal variations in vacation accruals, annual merit increases that were effective at the beginning of March, and the refresh of annual payroll tax limitations. Additionally, the $0.4 million increase in employee benefit expenses was primarily attributable to higher medical benefit costs.

Relative to the first quarter of 2023, noninterest expense decreased 13.0% from $35.9 million, primarily attributable to the absence of $7.1 million of Town and Country acquisition-related expenses, partially offset by an increase in salaries and benefits expenses.

Acquisition-related expenses recognized during the first quarter of 2023 are summarized below. No Town and Country acquisition-related expenses were recognized subsequent to the second quarter of 2023.

Loan Portfolio

Total loans outstanding, before allowance for credit losses, were $3.35 billion at March 31, 2024, compared with $3.40 billion at December 31, 2023 and $3.20 billion at March 31, 2023. The $58.5 million decrease from December 31, 2023 reflected a decrease in line utilization on existing lines of credit by $28.3 million, including $13.2 million drawn by two customers’ lines that paid off shortly after December 31, 2023 and were noted in the previous quarter’s earnings release. Additionally, across the portfolio, early payoffs of loans maturing or repricing beyond 2024 with fixed rates of 4.00% or less totaled $14.4 million. Construction and land development loans decreased by $18.0 million with several completed projects shifting to other loan categories. Although grain elevator loans increased $5.7 million during the first quarter of 2024, seasonal line utilization was significantly lower relative to historical levels.

Deposits

Total deposits were $4.36 billion at March 31, 2024, compared with $4.40 billion at December 31, 2023 and $4.31 billion at March 31, 2023. The $40.9 million decrease from December 31, 2023 was primarily attributable to a $89.1 million decrease in brokered deposits, which was partially offset by the addition of $33.9 million of time deposits from a State of Illinois loan matching program that are a lower cost source of funding.

Asset Quality

Nonperforming loans totaled $9.7 million, or 0.29% of total loans, at March 31, 2024, compared with $7.9 million, or 0.23% of total loans, at December 31, 2023, and $6.5 million, or 0.20% of total loans, at March 31, 2023. Additionally, of the $9.7 million of nonperforming loans held as of March 31, 2024, $2.7 million is either wholly or partially guaranteed by the U.S. government. The $1.8 million increase in nonperforming loans from December 31, 2023 was primarily attributable to the movement of a few commercial and industrial and commercial real estate - owner occupied credits to nonaccrual status.

The Company recorded a provision for credit losses of $0.5 million for the first quarter of 2024. The provision for credit losses primarily reflects a $3.7 million increase in required reserves resulting from changes in qualitative factors, a $2.1 million decrease in required reserves resulting from changes in economic forecasts, a $1.0 million decrease in required reserves driven by a reduction in loan portfolio balances, and a $0.1 million decrease in specific reserve.

The Company had net recoveries of $0.2 million, or 0.02% of average loans on an annualized basis, for the first quarter of 2024, compared to net charge-offs of $0.5 million, or 0.06% of average loans on an annualized basis, for the fourth quarter of 2023, and net recoveries of $0.1 million, or 0.02% of average loans on an annualized basis, for the first quarter of 2023.

The Company’s allowance for credit losses was 1.22% of total loans and 423% of nonperforming loans at March 31, 2024, compared with 1.18% of total loans and 510% of nonperforming loans at December 31, 2023. In addition, the allowance for credit losses on unfunded lending-related commitments totaled $3.8 million as of March 31, 2024, compared with $3.8 million as of December 31, 2023.

Capital

The ratio of tangible common equity to tangible assets ⁽¹⁾ increased to 8.40% as of March 31, 2024, from 8.19% as of December 31, 2023, and tangible book value per share ⁽¹⁾ increased by $0.29 to $13.19 as of March 31, 2024, when compared to December 31, 2023.

During the first quarter of 2024, the Company repurchased 179,281 shares of its common stock at a weighted average price of $18.93 under its stock repurchase program. The Company’s Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $15 million of HBT Financial common stock under its stock repurchase program, which is in effect until January 1, 2025. As of March 31, 2024, the Company had $11.6 million remaining under the stock repurchase program.
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_{⁽¹⁾ See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures.}

About HBT Financial, Inc.

HBT Financial, Inc., headquartered in Bloomington, Illinois, is the holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company, and has banking roots that can be traced back to 1920. HBT Financial provides a comprehensive suite of financial products and services to consumers, businesses, and municipal entities throughout Illinois and eastern Iowa through 66 full-service branches. As of March 31, 2024, HBT Financial had total assets of $5.0 billion, total loans of $3.3 billion, and total deposits of $4.4 billion.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Some of the financial measures included in this press release are not measures of financial performance recognized in accordance with GAAP. These non-GAAP financial measures include net interest income (tax-equivalent basis), net interest margin (tax-equivalent basis), efficiency ratio (tax-equivalent basis), ratio of tangible common equity to tangible assets, tangible book value per share, ROATCE, adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per share, adjusted ROAA, adjusted ROAE, and adjusted ROATCE. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures, together with the related GAAP financial measures, in its analysis of our performance and in making business decisions. Management believes that it is a standard practice in the banking industry to present these non-GAAP financial measures, and accordingly believes that providing these measures may be useful for peer comparison purposes. These disclosures should not be viewed as substitutes for the results determined to be in accordance with GAAP; nor are they necessarily comparable to non-GAAP financial measures that may be presented by other companies. See our reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures in the “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” tables.

Forward-Looking Statements

Readers should note that in addition to the historical information contained herein, this press release contains, and future oral and written statements of the Company and its management may contain, “forward-looking statements” within the meanings of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “will,” “propose,” “may,” “plan,” “seek,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” or “should,” or similar terminology. Any forward-looking statements presented herein are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect changes in assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or otherwise.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: (i) the strength of the local, state, national and international economies (including effects of inflationary pressures and supply chain constraints); (ii) the economic impact of any future terrorist threats and attacks, widespread disease or pandemics, acts of war or other threats thereof (including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Russian invasion of Ukraine), or other adverse external events that could cause economic deterioration or instability in credit markets, and the response of the local, state and national governments to any such adverse external events; (iii) changes in accounting policies and practices, as may be adopted by state and federal regulatory agencies, the Financial Accounting Standards Board or the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board; (iv) changes in state and federal laws, regulations and governmental policies concerning the Company’s general business and any changes in response to the recent failures of other banks or as a result of the upcoming 2024 presidential election; (v) changes in interest rates and prepayment rates of the Company’s assets (including the effects of significant rate increases by the Federal Reserve since 2020); (vi) increased competition in the financial services sector, including from non-bank competitors such as credit unions and “fintech” companies, and the inability to attract new customers; (vii) changes in technology and the ability to develop and maintain secure and reliable electronic systems; (viii) unexpected results of acquisitions, which may include failure to realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions and the possibility that transaction costs may be greater than anticipated; (ix) the loss of key executives or employees; (x) changes in consumer spending; (xi) unexpected outcomes of existing or new litigation involving the Company; (xii) the economic impact of exceptional weather occurrences such as tornadoes, floods and blizzards; (xiii) fluctuations in the value of securities held in our securities portfolio; (xiv) concentrations within our loan portfolio, large loans to certain borrowers, and large deposits from certain clients; (xv) the concentration of large deposits from certain clients who have balances above current FDIC insurance limits and may withdraw deposits to diversify their exposure; (xvi) the level of non-performing assets on our balance sheets; (xvii) interruptions involving our information technology and communications systems or third-party servicers; (xviii) breaches or failures of our information security controls or cybersecurity-related incidents, and (xix) the ability of the Company to manage the risks associated with the foregoing as well as anticipated. Readers should note that the forward-looking statements included in this press release are not a guarantee of future events, and that actual events may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Additional information concerning the Company and its business, including additional factors that could materially affect the Company’s financial results, is included in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CONTACT:
Peter Chapman
HBTIR@hbtbank.com
(309) 664-4556

_{^* Annualized measure.}

_{⁽¹⁾ See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures.
⁽²⁾ On a tax-equivalent basis assuming a federal income tax rate of 21% and a state tax rate of 9.5%.}

_{^* Annualized measure.}

_{⁽¹⁾ Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average total interest-earning assets.
⁽²⁾ On a tax-equivalent basis assuming a federal income tax rate of 21% and a state income tax rate of 9.5%.
⁽³⁾ See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to their most closely comparable GAAP financial measures.
⁽⁴⁾ Net interest rate spread represents the difference between the yield on average interest-earning assets and the cost of average interest-bearing liabilities.
⁽⁵⁾ Net interest-earning assets represents total interest-earning assets less total interest-bearing liabilities.}