PacWest Bancorp reports Q3 adjusted EPS (31c), consensus 6c

Paul Taylor, President and CEO, commented, “The integration planning for our merger with Banc of California, Inc. continues to progress very well. We expect the closing of the merger to occur on or about November 30, 2023, subject to receipt of stockholder approvals. We all look forward to completing the merger so we can begin to execute on a successful business plan for the combined company that we expect will drive significant value for PacWest’s stockholders, customers, communities, and employees.” Taylor concluded, “As we work toward the completion of the merger, our primary strategic focus is adding new deposit customers and continuing to provide outstanding customer service to our existing customers. Our credit quality continues to be stable. Our funding profile improved in the third quarter as we strategically reduced higher-cost brokered deposits and we are pleased to see growth in the Community Bank return. We strategically put in place a high-cost liquidity buffer over the past few quarters to safely navigate the turmoil in the regional banking market. We created this buffer by selling loans and adding customer deposits and wholesale funding. We expect our profitability to improve as we continue to wind down wholesale funding, benefit from lower FDIC insurance expense, and execute on our profitability initiatives.”