OceanFirst Financial (OCFC) - 2024 Q4 - Annual Results

Financial Performance - Net income available to common stockholders for Q4 2024 was $20.9 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, down from $26.7 million, or $0.46 per diluted share in Q4 2023[2]. - Core earnings for Q4 2024 were $22.1 million, or $0.38 per diluted share, compared to $26.3 million, or $0.45 per diluted share in Q4 2023[3]. - Net income attributable to OceanFirst Financial Corp. was $21,909 thousand for the three months ended December 31, 2024, down 12.4% from $25,116 thousand in the prior quarter[48]. - Net income attributable to OceanFirst Financial Corp. for the quarter ended December 31, 2024, was $21,909, a decrease from $27,682 in the same quarter of 2023[69]. - Core earnings (Non-GAAP) decreased to $93,559 million in 2024 from $104,718 million in 2023, a decline of approximately 10.7%[79]. - Core diluted earnings per share fell to $1.60 in 2024, down from $1.78 in 2023, representing a decrease of about 10.1%[79]. Revenue and Income Sources - Net interest income decreased to $83.3 million in Q4 2024 from $87.8 million in Q4 2023, with net interest margin at 2.69%, down from 2.82%[7]. - Other income for Q4 2024 increased to $12.2 million from $11.9 million in Q4 2023, driven by increases in bank owned life insurance income and net gain on sale of loans[18]. - Total interest income for the year ended December 31, 2024, was $642,173 thousand, an increase of 5.6% compared to $607,974 thousand for the year ended December 31, 2023[48]. - Net interest income for the year ended December 31, 2024, was $334,035, down from $369,731 in the previous year[64]. Loan and Deposit Activity - Loan growth for Q4 2024 was $95.9 million, or 4% annualized, with originations increasing by 20% to $515.2 million[5]. - Total deposits remained at $10.1 billion, with a net increase of $76.5 million, or 3% annualized, excluding brokered deposit run-off[5]. - Total deposits as of December 31, 2024, were $10,066,342, slightly down from $10,434,949 a year earlier[69]. - Total loans receivable as of December 31, 2024, amounted to $10,118,072, an increase from $10,022,156 in the previous quarter[50]. - Total consumer loans receivable reached $3,280,225 as of December 31, 2024, up from $3,246,188 in the previous quarter[50]. - Total commercial loans receivable increased to $6,837,847 as of December 31, 2024, compared to $6,775,968 in the previous quarter[50]. Expenses and Efficiency - Operating expenses for the quarter ended December 31, 2024, increased to $64.8 million from $60.2 million, impacted by non-core items of $110,000 related to merger expenses[24]. - The efficiency ratio for Q4 2024 was 67.86%, up from 60.38% in Q4 2023[2]. - Excluding non-core operations, operating expenses increased by $6.2 million, driven by a $4.5 million rise in compensation and benefits due to acquisitions[25]. - Total operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2024, were $245,877 thousand, slightly down from $248,912 thousand in the previous year, a decrease of 1.2%[48]. - Efficiency ratio worsened to 67.86% in Q4 2024 from 60.38% in Q4 2023[72]. Asset and Liability Management - Total assets decreased by $117.0 million to $13.42 billion, primarily due to a $76.5 million decrease in total loans[31]. - Total liabilities decreased by $157.8 million to $11.72 billion, with deposits down by $368.6 million to $10.07 billion[32]. - The loans-to-deposit ratio increased to 100.5% from 97.7%[32]. - Total assets as of December 31, 2024, were $13,495,402, compared to $13,487,029 as of December 31, 2023, reflecting a slight increase[64]. - Total liabilities increased to $11.842 billion as of December 31, 2024, from $11.750 billion in the previous quarter[62]. Credit Quality - Provision for credit losses for Q4 2024 was $3.5 million, compared to $3.2 million in Q4 2023[15]. - The Company's non-performing loans increased to $35.5 million, representing 0.35% of total loans[36]. - The allowance for loan credit losses was 0.73% of total loans, up from 0.66%[36]. - Non-performing loans totaled $35,527 as of December 31, 2024, up from $28,139 in the previous quarter, indicating a 26.8% increase[54]. - The provision for credit losses was $3,467 thousand for the three months ended December 31, 2024, compared to $517 thousand in the previous quarter, indicating an increase in credit loss provisions[48]. - Provision for credit losses was $7,689 million in 2024, significantly lower than $17,678 million in 2023, indicating improved credit quality[79]. Shareholder Returns - The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share, marking the 112th consecutive quarterly dividend[5]. - Book value per common share increased to $29.08 at the end of Q4 2024 from $27.96 at the end of Q4 2023[74]. - Total stockholders' equity increased to $1.70 billion, reflecting net income and offset by $21.5 million in share repurchases[34]. - Stockholders' equity rose to $1.703 billion as of December 31, 2024, compared to $1.689 billion in the previous quarter[62]. - Tangible common equity decreased to $1,111,242 million in December 2024 from $1,090,759 million in December 2023, a decrease of about 1.9%[82].