Signature Bank Earned $2.94 per Share

Signature Bank (SBNY), a New York-based full-service commercial bank, today announced results for its fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2018.

Net income for the 2018 fourth quarter was $160.8 million, or $2.94 diluted earnings per share, compared with $114.9 million, or $2.11 diluted earnings per share, for the 2017 fourth quarter. The increase in net income for the 2018 fourth quarter, when compared with the same period last year, is primarily the result of an increase in net interest income, fueled by strong average deposit and loan growth as well as an increase in prepayment penalty income, and a decrease in the provision for loan losses attributable to taxi medallion loan write-downs. These factors were partially offset by an increase in non-interest expenses.

Net interest income for the 2018 fourth quarter rose $15.3 million, or 4.8 percent, to $335.0 million, compared with the fourth quarter of 2017. This increase is primarily due to growth in average interest-earning assets and an increase in prepayment penalty income. Total assets reached $47.36 billion at December 31, 2018, expanding $4.24 billion, or 9.8 percent, from $43.12 billion at December 31, 2017. Average assets for the 2018 fourth quarter reached $46.60 billion, an increase of $4.45 billion, or 10.6 percent, versus the comparable period a year ago.

Deposits for the 2018 fourth quarter increased $287.5 million, or 0.8 percent, to $36.38 billion at December 31, 2018, while non-interest bearing deposits decreased $142.5 million and represent 33.0 percent of total deposits. Overall deposit growth in 2018 was 8.8 percent, or $2.94 billion, when compared with deposits at the end of 2017. Average total deposits for 2018 were $35.14 billion, growing $1.98 billion, or 6.0 percent, versus average total deposits of $33.16 billion for 2017.

“Throughout 2018, Signature Bank continued to execute its core strategy. We expanded our network with the addition of eight Private Client Banking teams while growing across all key metrics, including core deposits, loans and earnings. We bolstered our West Coast operations and added a Funds Banking Division catering to private equity firms, which are heavily emphasized on both coasts. This will allow us to further transform the balance sheet to increase floating rate assets. Additionally, we continued to reinvest in our infrastructure with the implementation of a new loan operating system, buildouts of a new loan approval system and foreign exchange platform as well as the reorganization of our Cash Management and Product Management groups. Lastly, on January 1, 2019, we innovated when we launched SignetTM, a new proprietary, blockchain-based digital payments platform, allowing our commercial clients to interact in a real-time and transparent manner,” explained Joseph J. DePaolo, President and Chief Executive Officer.

“This past year has been a volatile time for the banking industry, driven by a variety of external factors. However, we continued to perform by keeping with our founding mission and sustaining our leadership position in serving privately held businesses. Our focus, initiatives and proven capabilities should differentiate us from the pack, and we are prepared to address any challenges that may lie ahead,” DePaolo concluded.

Scott A. Shay, Chairman of the Board, said: “We are ever-mindful of the fact that technology is reshaping banking. We could not have founded Signature Bank in 2001 as a full-service commercial bank with a new single point of contact model without the technological advancements of the 1990s. We continuously examine the needs of our business clients to set our technology agenda, and strive to save them money and keep it safe, while allowing them to focus on their own business — and not banking. It is from this fundamental perspective Signet was born. By launching Signet, we are empowering our clients to make instantaneous USD payments in real time (24/7/365) at no cost per transaction. With Signet, we are playing a key role in the revolutionizing of commercial digital payments.

“The client response to Signet has been uniformly positive. Clients are already evaluating their business practices to determine how they might bring their ecosystems onto the Signet platform. There are no other platforms that offer transparency and convenience commercially at this time. We are working with clients across specific industries to tailor the system as we strive for continuous improvement. We recognize banking will be vastly different five years from now, and we aim to be among the leaders.”

Posted by on January 17th, 2019 at 9:14 am


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