Sierra Bancorp Reports First Quarter 2025 Results

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR), parent of Bank of the Sierra, today announced its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2025. Sierra Bancorp reported consolidated net income of $9.1 million, or $0.65 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2025 compared to $9.3 million, or $0.64 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2024.

Highlights for the First Quarter of 2025 (unless otherwise stated):

• Solid Quarterly Earnings Metrics
  • Diluted Earnings Per Share increased from the same quarter in 2024.
  • Improved Efficiency Ratio ⁽¹⁾ to 60.62% as compared to 65.97% in the same quarter in 2024.
  • Increased Net Interest Margin to 3.74% as compared to 3.65% in the prior linked quarter and 3.62% in the first quarter of 2024.
    
    
    
    
• Stable Balance Sheet
  • Loan growth, exclusive of change in mortgage warehouse line utilization, of $18.6 million, or 4% annualized.
  • Mortgage warehouse utilization declined $43.2 million during the quarter primarily due to $39 million in paydowns during the final week of the quarter.
  • Reduced higher cost brokered deposits by $85.0 million during the quarter, while all other deposits increased by $43.2 million, or 7% annualized.
  • Noninterest-bearing deposits of $1.0 billion at March 31, 2025, represent 36% of total deposits.
  • Uninsured deposits are approximately 28% of total deposit balances.
    
    
    
    
• Strong Capital and Liquidity
  • Increased Tangible Book Value ⁽¹⁾ per share by 1% to $23.44 per share during the quarter.
  • Strong regulatory Community Bank Leverage Ratio increased to 12.1% for our subsidiary bank.
  • Repurchased 476,770 shares of stock during the quarter at an average price of $29.71.
  • Declared dividend of $0.25 per share, payable on May 15, 2025.
  • Overall primary and secondary liquidity sources of $2.3 billion at March 31, 2025.

"Consistency is the key to achieving and maintaining momentum." – Darren Hardy

"As we navigate the uncertainty impacting our global and local economy, our banking team has worked diligently to produce consistently solid results," stated Kevin McPhaill, CEO and President. "These efforts resulted in growth of both commercial and real estate loans, as well as increases in each category of customer transaction deposits in the first quarter of 2025. Net interest margin and efficiency ratio also improved. Our team's resilience and commitment provide us with optimism as we navigate 2025!" McPhaill concluded.

Quarterly Changes (comparisons to the first quarter of 2024)

• Net income for the first quarter of 2025 decreased $0.2 million, or 2%, to $9.1 million. There was a favorable increase in net interest income of $1.4 million and a $2.1 million reduction in noninterest expense, which were offset by an increase in the provision for credit losses of $1.9 million as well as reduction of noninterest income of $1.9 million. The $1.4 million increase in net interest income for the quarter was driven by a 12 basis point increase in the net interest margin due to lower cost of deposits and borrowings and an increase in yield on loans, partially offset by lower yields on investments.
• Noninterest income for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to the same period in 2024, decreased $1.9 million or 23%. In the first quarter of 2024, we had a loss on the sale of bonds from a balance sheet restructure for $3.0 million offset by a gain on the sale/leaseback of two bank-owned branch buildings for $3.8 million, with no like transaction in the first quarter of 2025. We experienced an unfavorable variance of $1.5 million in bank-owned life insurance (BOLI), but had increases in other noninterest income, primarily life insurance proceeds, and dividends for $0.5 million.

Linked Quarter Changes (comparisons to the three months ended December 31, 2024)

• Net income decreased by $1.3 million, or 12%, due mostly to an 8% increase in the effective tax rate resulting from timing differences for amortization of low-income housing tax credit partnership interests. Net interest income decreased by $0.2 million, or 1%, during the quarter due mostly to lower yields on investments, and a decline in mortgage warehouse loan income. These unfavorable variances were partially offset by organic growth in loans, and lower costs of interest-bearing liabilities.
• Noninterest income declined by $0.9 million, mostly in service charges on deposits, and an unfavorable variance in BOLI income.
• Noninterest expenses declined $0.4 million, mostly due to a $0.7 million favorable variance in deferred compensation expenses related to the change in BOLI income described above.

Balance Sheet Quarterly Changes (comparisons to December 31, 2024)

• Total assets decreased slightly by 0.2%, or $8.1 million, to $3.6 billion, during the first three months of 2025.
• Gross loans decreased $24.6 million, due to a $43.2 million decrease in mortgage warehouse line utilization, partially offset by a favorable increase in organic loan growth of $18.6 million.
• Deposits decreased by $41.8 million, or 1%. The decline in deposits came from an $85.0 million planned decrease in brokered deposits, while overall customer deposits increased $43.2 million.

Other financial highlights are reflected in the following table.

INCOME STATEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Net Interest Income

Net interest income was $30.1 million for the first quarter of 2025, a decrease of $0.2 million, or 1%, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, and an increase of $1.4 million, or 5%, as compared to the first quarter of 2024. Although interest expense improved by $1.4 million due to a 14 basis points favorable cost of funds, interest income declined by $1.6 million, due to a decline in both volume and interest rates on investments and a slight decline in loan interest income, mostly from the decrease in line utilization of mortgage warehouse lines.

The $1.4 million increase in interest income for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to the same quarter in 2024, is due primarily to a $232.2 million increase in average loan balances, as well as a 37 basis point increase in yield. This was complemented by a $0.9 million decrease in interest expense due to the movement of deposits from higher cost time deposits, including wholesale brokered deposits to lower or no cost transaction accounts. Interest-bearing deposit costs decreased 9 basis points in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the same quarter in 2024, along with a 47 basis points decrease in the cost of borrowed funds. Additionally average borrowed funds were $35.0 million lower in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the same quarter in 2024.

Our net interest margin was 3.74% for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to 3.65% for the linked quarter, and 3.62% for the quarter ending March 31, 2024. While the yield of interest-earning assets decreased three basis points for the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the linked quarter, the cost of interest-bearing liabilities decreased 18 basis points for the same period of comparison. The average balance of interest-earning assets decreased $44.4 million for the linked quarter while the decrease in interest-bearing liabilities was $61.8 million for the same period. The decrease in interest rates on a larger volume of interest-bearing liabilities (mostly higher cost borrowed funds) over the smaller decrease in yield on interest-earning assets improved the net interest margin over the linked quarter.

Provision for Credit Losses

The Company recorded a provision for credit losses on loans of $2.0 million in the first quarter of 2025, as compared to $2.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, and $0.1 million in the first quarter of 2024. The increased provision for credit losses on loans in the first quarter of 2025 over the first quarter of 2024 was primarily due to increased specific reserves on individually evaluated loans, while the decrease for the linked quarter is mainly attributed to an increase in net loan recoveries.

Credit loss expense on unfunded commitments was $0.1 million in the first quarter of 2025, as compared to $0.07 million in the linked quarter, and $0.03 million in the same quarter in 2024. The reason for the increase in the first quarter of 2025 is due to an increase in the balance of unfunded commitments on construction loans.

All debt securities in an unrealized loss position were primarily attributable to changes in interest rates and volatility in the financial markets and not a result of an expected credit loss.

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income decreased by $0.9 million, or 12%, to $6.6 million in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the linked quarter. Noninterest income decreased by $1.9 million, or 23%, in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the same quarter in 2024. The decrease in the first quarter of 2025 of $0.9 million, compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, is primarily due to a $0.6 million unfavorable change in bank-owned life insurance (which is mostly offset by a favorable change in deferred compensation as described below), as well as lower service charges on deposit accounts. Partially offsetting these unfavorable variances were $0.2 million in additional life insurance death benefits.

Reasons for the $1.9 million decrease in the first quarter of 2025, as compared to the same quarter last year, is due mostly to a $1.5 million unfavorable change in bank owned life insurance associated with deferred compensation plans (as described further below) as well as $0.9 million in year-over-year differences due to the first quarter of 2024 strategic balance sheet restructure, which included a bond sale and sale/leaseback of branch properties. Partially offsetting these unfavorable variances were $0.3 million in additional life insurance death benefits.

Service charges and fees on customer deposit accounts declined by $0.5 million, or 8%, to $5.6 million in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024. Lower seasonal analysis fees, returned check charges, and debit card interchange fees were the primary drivers of the unfavorable variance. Service charges and fees were $0.1 million lower in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the first quarter of 2024 primarily due to lower overdraft-related fees.

Within noninterest income and noninterest expense are mostly offsetting amounts related to bank owned life insurance and non-qualified deferred compensation. This created a year-over-year unfavorable variance of $1.5 million within noninterest income and a favorable year-over-year $1.5 million variance for noninterest expense.

Noninterest Expense

Total noninterest expense decreased $0.4 million, or 2%, in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, and decreased $2.1 million, or 9%, compared to the first quarter of 2024. The primary driver of lower expense in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the linked quarter, and the same period in 2024, is deferred directors' fees as part of the Company's deferred compensation plan. The lower deferred compensation expense was offset by lower bank-owned life insurance income, mostly due to fluctuations in underlying values of assets in the separate account BOLI policies that are designed to have similar assets to those in the deferred compensation plans.

Salaries and benefits were $0.3 million higher in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, and $0.2 million lower than the first quarter of 2024. The increase in the linked quarter was due to a change in timing of 401(k) contributions by the Company. The decrease in the year-over-year quarterly comparison is due to several factors, including severance payments in the first quarter of 2024, with no like payments in the first quarter of 2025, and a decrease in deferred compensation expense, due to fluctuations in BOLI income. Overall full-time equivalent employees were 489 at March 31, 2025, as compared to 485 at December 31, 2024, and 492 at March 31, 2024.

Occupancy expense decreased $0.2 million for the linked quarters and was mostly unchanged for the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the same quarter last year. The reason for the decreases in the linked quarter comparison is mostly due to modest rent and utility expense decreases as we terminated a storage facility and a satellite administrative office lease.

Other noninterest expense decreased $0.5 million, or 7%, in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024 and decreased $1.9 million over the first quarter of 2024. The primary reason for the positive variance in both comparisons was decreased directors' deferred compensation expense which is linked to the fluctuation in BOLI income. Additionally for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to the same period in 2024, debit card processing costs and debit card losses were $0.4 million lower because of the Company's conversion from Mastercard to VISA.

The Company's effective tax rate was 25.8% in the first quarter of 2025 relative to 17.7% in the fourth quarter of 2024, and 26.3% for the first quarter of 2024. The variances in the effective tax rates are due to fluctuations in tax credits and related amortization, as well as tax-exempt income as a percentage of total taxable income.

Balance Sheet Summary

The $8.1 million decrease in total assets during the first quarter of 2025 is a result of a $39.1 million decrease in investment securities and a $24.6 million decrease in gross loans, partially offset by a $59.0 million increase in cash on hand.

Investment securities decreased $39.1 million, or 4.0%, to $922.4 million primarily due to paydowns in the portfolio, which were partially used to offset brokered deposit maturities.

Gross loan balances decreased $24.6 million, or 1%, during the first quarter of 2025. Organic loan growth contributed to a $22.5 million increase in commercial real estate loans, a $2.3 million increase in other construction loans and a $3.4 million increase in commercial loans. Consumer loans had a modest decline, while residential real estate loans decreased $4.9 million, and farmland loans decreased $4.3 million. Mortgage warehouse line utilization decreased $43.2 million, or 13%, due to a combination of seasonality and two large line paydowns shortly before quarter-end. The Company continues to see an increased pipeline of new mortgage warehouse customers.

As indicated in the loan rollforward below, new credit extended for the first quarter of 2025 decreased $13.6 million over the linked quarter comparison and increased $31.4 million over the same period in 2024. For the first three months ended 2025, we had $32.7 million in loan paydowns and maturities, along with a $12.1 million decrease in line of credit utilization, and a $46.1 million decrease in mortgage warehouse utilization.

Unused commitments, excluding mortgage warehouse and overdraft lines, were $267.4 million at March 31, 2025, compared to $256.9 million at December 31, 2024. Total utilization excluding mortgage warehouse and overdraft lines was 56% at March 31, 2025, compared to 57% at December 31, 2024. Mortgage warehouse utilization declined to 41% at March 31, 2025, compared to 51% at December 31, 2024. The decrease in mortgage warehouse utilization during the first quarter of 2025 was due to seasonality and late quarter line paydowns as described above.

Deposit balances declined by $41.8 million, or 1%, during the first quarter of 2025 to $2.8 billion at March 31, 2025. Core non-maturity deposits increased $52.6 million, or 3%, for the first three months of 2025, while customer time deposits decreased by $9.4 million. Brokered deposits decreased $85.0 million during the quarter, as the Company utilized some paydowns in the investment portfolio and changes in mortgage warehouse line utilization to offset recent brokered deposit maturities. Noninterest-bearing deposits as a percentage of total deposits increased to 36.4% at March 31, 2025, compared to 34.8% at December 31, 2024, and from 34.0% at March 31, 2024.

Overall uninsured deposits are estimated to be $788.6 million, or 28% of total deposit balances, excluding public agency deposits that are subject to collateralization through a letter of credit issued by the FHLB. In addition, uninsured deposits of the bank's customers are eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance if the customer opens an IntraFi Insured Cash Sweep account or a reciprocal time deposit through the Certificate of Deposit Account Registry System (CDARS). IntraFi allows for up to $275 million of combined pass-through FDIC insurance which would more than cover each of the Bank's deposit customers if such customer desired to have such pass-through insurance. The Bank maintains a diversified deposit base with no significant customer concentrations and does not bank any cryptocurrency companies. At March 31, 2025, the Company had approximately 119,000 accounts and the 25 largest deposit balance customers had balances of less than 10% of overall deposits. Other interest-bearing liabilities of $198.8 million on March 31, 2025, consist of $118.8 million in customer repurchase agreements and $80.0 million of term FHLB borrowings, as compared to $108.9 million in customer repurchase agreements, and $80.0 million of term FHLB borrowings on December 31, 2024.

The Company continues to have substantial liquidity. At March 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, the Company had the following sources of primary and secondary liquidity (dollars in thousands):

Total capital of $351.8 million at March 31, 2025, reflects a decrease of $5.5 million, or 2%, compared to December 31, 2024. The decrease in equity during the first quarter of 2025 is due to net income of $9.1 million, offset by a $3.5 million dividend paid to shareholders, $14.2 million in share repurchases, and a $2.4 million favorable swing in other comprehensive income/loss due principally to positive changes in investment securities' fair value. The remaining difference is related to equity compensation recognized during the quarter.

Asset Quality

Total nonperforming assets, comprised of non-accrual loans, decreased by $1.5 million, or 7%, to $18.2 million, during the first quarter of 2025. The decrease in non-accrual loans, was from the successful payoff and paydown of a couple of loans secured by farmland. The Company's ratio of nonperforming assets to loans plus foreclosed assets decreased to 0.79% at March 31, 2025, from 0.84% at December 31, 2024.

Subsequent to March 31, 2025, the Company received payment in full on a loan relationship secured by commercial real estate, which was on non-accrual. The $6.5 million payoff included all principal, interest, and fees due, bringing the total of non-accrual loans to $12.3 million.

The Company's allowance for credit losses on loans was $27.1 million at March 31, 2025, as compared to $24.8 million at December 31, 2024, and $23.1 million at March 31, 2024. The increase is primarily attributable to an increase in the allowance for loans individually evaluated and was specifically related to a single loan relationship of a wine grape grower. The allowance was 1.17% of total loans at March 31, 2025, 1.07% of total loans at December 31, 2024, and 1.07% of total loans at March 31, 2024. Management's detailed analysis indicates that the Company's allowance for credit losses on loans should be sufficient to cover credit losses for the life of the loans outstanding as of March 31, 2025, but no assurance can be given that the Company will not experience substantial future losses relative to the size of the credit loss allowance for loans. The total allowance for credit losses on loans of $27.1 million at March 31, 2025, included $0.3 million of allowance related to $283.2 million of mortgage warehouse lines.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp is the holding Company for Bank of the Sierra (www.bankofthesierra.com), which is in its 48^th year of operations and is the largest independent bank headquartered in the South San Joaquin Valley. Bank of the Sierra is a community-centric regional bank, which offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking services through full-service branches located within the counties of Tulare, Kern, Kings, Fresno, Ventura, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Barbara. The Bank also maintains an online branch and provides specialized lending services through an agricultural credit center in Templeton, California. In 2025, Bank of the Sierra was recognized as one of the strongest and top-performing community banks in the country, with a 5-star rating from Bauer Financial.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements contained in this release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements based on management's current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company. Readers are cautioned not to unduly rely on forward looking statements. Actual results may differ from those projected. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including but not limited to the health of the national and local economies, loan portfolio performance, the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled employees, customers' service expectations, the Company's ability to successfully deploy new technology, the success of acquisitions and branch expansion, changes in interest rates, and other factors detailed in the Company's SEC filings, including the "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of the Company's most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Q.