SANTA CRUZ, Calif., Jan. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Santa Cruz County Bank (OTC Pink: SCZC), with assets over $1 billion, is a top rated community bank headquartered in Santa Cruz County. Today the bank announced unaudited earnings for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2019. Net income for the year was a record $12.3 million, an increase of $900 thousand or 8% over prior year.
President and CEO David V. Heald commented, "We are pleased to report another record setting year of achievements, both financially and strategically. In 2019, with the support of our shareholders, we successfully completed our merger with Lighthouse Bank. We enter our sixteenth year of operations with greater strength and resources to serve individuals and businesses in our community and into two new market areas, Silicon Valley and Monterey County."
On October 18, 2019, Santa Cruz County Bank and Lighthouse Bank completed the previously announced Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Merger. The combined organization, with over $1 billion in assets, and enhanced lending capacity will allow the Bank to attract and serve much larger relationships. The Bank also recently announced its plan to expand into Salinas and the Monterey Peninsula where the Bank’s extensive knowledge in USDA and FSA lending will benefit the predominant agricultural businesses in this market area.
Allowance for loan losses 10,296,230 9,836,731 5% Non-interest-bearing deposits 345,604,709 259,724,984 33%
Net Income $12,262,759 $11,380,086 8%
Fourth Quarter Earnings
Net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 was $3.0 million compared to $3.0 million for the previous quarter ended September 30, 2019, and $3.2 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2018. Pretax income for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 was $4.3 million compared to $4.4 million for the previous quarter ended September 30, 2019. Earnings per share for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2019 was $0.85 per share, a 35% or $0.45 decrease over the same period in 2018. The decrease was due to recognition of $3.0 million of expenses related to the Lighthouse Bank merger in the fourth quarter of 2019 and the issuance of shares to Lighthouse Bank shareholders in conjunction with terms of the merger.
Year to Date Earnings
Net income for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $12.3 million compared to $11.4 million for the same period […]