Southern States Bancshares(US:SSBK)2024-04-23 14:34Financial Performance - Net income for Q1 2024 was $8.1 million, or $0.90 diluted earnings per share, compared to $8.9 million, or $0.99 per share in Q4 2023, and $7.7 million, or $0.85 per share in Q1 2023[4] - Core net income for Q1 2024 was $8.1 million, or $0.90 diluted core earnings per share, up from $7.3 million, or $0.81 per share in Q4 2023[5] - Net income for Q1 2024 was $8.1 million, a decrease from $8.9 million in Q4 2023 but an increase from $7.7 million in Q1 2023[26] - Basic earnings per share for the first quarter of 2024 were $0.91, compared to $1.00 in the previous quarter, a decrease of 9.0%[34] - Core net income for Q1 2024 was $8,128 thousand, up from $7,289 thousand in Q4 2023, reflecting a growth of 11.5%[50] Income and Expenses - Net interest income increased to $20.8 million, a 2.1% rise from $20.4 million in Q4 2023, and a 6.6% increase from $19.5 million in Q1 2023[7][8] - Total noninterest income decreased to $1.3 million, a 59.3% decline from $3.1 million in Q4 2023, primarily due to a one-time fee in the previous quarter[10][11] - Total noninterest expenses increased to $10.4 million, a 6.8% rise from $9.7 million in Q4 2023, driven by higher salaries and benefits[12][13] - Net interest income for Q1 2024 was $20,839 thousand, up from $20,404 thousand in the previous quarter, reflecting a growth of 2.1%[36] Loans and Credit Quality - Total loans reached $1.97 billion, a 4.3% increase from Q4 2023 and a 19.4% increase from Q1 2023[14] - Nonperforming loans totaled $3.4 million, or 0.17% of gross loans, up from $1.2 million, or 0.06% in Q4 2023[15] - The provision for credit losses was $1.2 million in Q1 2024, down from $2.6 million in Q4 2023[16] - Nonperforming loans increased to $3,446 thousand as of March 31, 2024, compared to $1,177 thousand at December 31, 2023, showing a significant rise of 194.5%[29] - Net charge-offs rose to $470 thousand in Q1 2024, compared to $382 thousand in Q4 2023, indicating an increase of 23%[45] Deposits and Funding - Total deposits increased to $2.1 billion as of March 31, 2024, up 4.5% from $2.0 billion at December 31, 2023, and 17.9% from $1.8 billion at March 31, 2023[19] - Interest-bearing deposits rose by $112.9 million in Q1 2024, contributing to a total of $1.7 billion, a 7.1% increase from the previous quarter and a 24.9% increase year-over-year[19] - Total deposits rose to $2,109,798 thousand, compared to $2,018,189 thousand at the end of 2023, marking an increase of 4.5%[32] Capital and Equity - The Tier 1 capital ratio to average assets was 8.79% as of March 31, 2024, down from 8.99% at December 31, 2023[20] - Total stockholders' equity increased to $222.9 million as of March 31, 2024, up from $215.0 million at December 31, 2023, primarily due to earnings growth[20] - Total shareholders' equity increased to $222,881 thousand as of March 31, 2024, from $214,964 thousand at the end of 2023, representing a growth of 3.5%[32] Efficiency and Margins - The efficiency ratio for Q1 2024 was 46.90%, compared to 41.48% in Q4 2023, indicating a decline in operational efficiency[26] - The net interest margin (NIM) for Q1 2024 was 3.59%, down 10 basis points from Q4 2023 and down 48 basis points from 4.07% in Q1 2023[8][9] - The net interest margin for Q1 2024 was 3.59%, down from 3.69% in Q4 2023, a decrease of 2.7%[50] - The company reported a net interest spread of 2.63% for the current quarter, down from 2.73% in the previous quarter, reflecting tighter margins[36] Asset Quality - The percentage of nonperforming assets to total assets was 0.14% as of March 31, 2024, up from 0.05% at the end of the previous quarter, highlighting a deterioration in asset quality[43] - The allowance for credit losses was $25,144 million as of March 31, 2024, compared to $24,378 million at the end of the previous quarter, reflecting a proactive approach to managing potential loan losses[43]