iStock photo illustration
NBT Bank made both deposit and income gains in the third quarter of 2024, partially a result of the acquisition of Western Massachusetts’ Salisbury Bank.
Net income was $38.1 million compared to $24.6 million from the third quarter of 2023. Deposits were $11.59 billion as of Sept. 30 of this year, up $619.3 million from Dec. 31, 2023.
“Sequential growth in net interest income and margin for the second consecutive quarter as well as strong performance from our diverse mix of fee businesses drove NBT’s positive operating performance in the third quarter of 2024.” NBT President and CEO Scott A. Kingsley said during the bank’s third-quarter earnings call. “In September, we entered into a definitive agreement to merge with Evans Bancorp, Inc. The greater Buffalo and Rochester communities served by Evans are a natural extension of NBT’s footprint in Upstate New York, and our shared community banking values support our strategic rationale. We expect the merger to close in the second quarter of 2025, pending required approvals by regulatory agencies and Evans’ shareholders.”
When asked by stock analysts about the effects of the 50 basis points interest cut from The Federal Reserve, affects NBT’s deposit pricing. The bank stated that 40 percent of its book is price sensitive with $3.4 billion in money market accounts being the most sensitive.
NBT also saw a large growth in C&I loans with an increase from $104.7 million to $1.46 billion. Kingsley mentioned that NBT made a concerted effort in regards to C&I growth and even adjusted some of the bank’s goals and objectives which reflects that focus.
“The hope is that focus on CNI relationships also brings a funding compliment to that hat we can capitalize on over time as well,” Kingsley said. “Does not mean that we don’t like the commercial real estate opportunities we’re seeing, and I think the current environment has allowed us to be a little bit more selective on those and has also allowed for a little bit of yield spread on an improving basis.”
