Strong Adjusted Earnings and Profitability
Adjusted net income (excludes merger-related charges) increased 18% year-over-year to $47.7 million in 4Q25; pretax pre-provision adjusted earnings rose to $93.2 million, up 39% quarter-over-quarter and 65% year-over-year. Excluding day-one provisioning and merger costs, 4Q25 ROA was 1.22% and return on tangible equity was 15.72%.
Robust Loan Growth
Loan outstandings grew at a 15% annualized rate (organic growth) in the quarter, driven by commercial production and incremental mortgage volume from the Villages (VBI) acquisition; commercial production increased 22% from the prior quarter.
Net Interest Income and Margin Expansion
Tax-equivalent net interest income increased $42.3 million (32%) versus the prior quarter and $60.1 million (52%) versus the prior year quarter. Net interest income was $174.6 million (up 31% QoQ). Net interest margin expanded to 3.66% (including accretion) and to 3.44% excluding accretion (12 bps QoQ expansion excluding accretion). Loan yields rose to 6.02% (6 bps QoQ) and 5.68% excluding accretion (7 bps QoQ).
Wealth Management and Fee Income Momentum
Wealth management added $550 million of new AUM in 2025; total AUM rose 37% year-over-year (5-year CAGR of 23%). Noninterest income was $28.6 million in 4Q25, up 20% from the prior quarter, and wealth income grew 21% QoQ.
Deposits, Funding Cost Improvement and Liquidity
Total deposits increased to $16.3 billion (average balances up 29% QoQ, reflecting the VBI acquisition and seasonality). Cost of deposits declined to 1.67% and exited the year at 1.64%; overall cost of funds fell 16 basis points from the prior quarter. Management emphasized a diverse deposit mix with customer transaction accounts at 48% of deposits.
Capital Strength and Faster Earn-Back from Acquisition
Tier 1 capital ratio of 14.4% and tangible equity to tangible assets at 9.3%. The VBI acquisition closed with materially higher tangible equity than projected, delivering roughly 90 bps (~$92 million) of additional total risk-based capital versus initial deal assumptions and shortening the earn-back period.
Securities Reposition Delivered Yield Pickup and TBV Recovery
Securities portfolio grew to $5.75 billion pro forma VBI. Management sold ~ $1.5 billion of the VBI securities portfolio (including >$600M corporate debt) and later sold $317M of AFS securities (book yield <2%), reinvesting $277M at a taxable-equivalent yield of 4.8% (pickup ~290 bps). Net unrealized losses in AFS improved $18.5 million in 4Q and $137 million for 2025, adding ~ $1 to tangible book value. Portfolio yield rose 21 bps to 4.13% in 4Q25.
Positive 2026 Guidance
Management expects FY2026 adjusted EPS of $2.48–$2.52 (raised vs prior $2.46 articulation), adjusted revenue growth of 29–31% YoY, adjusted efficiency ratio of 53–55%, exit-year ROA above 1.30% and return on tangible equity of ~16% post Villages conversion. Company plans ~15% increase in banker headcount in 2026, and expects high-single-digit loan growth and low- to mid-single-digit deposit growth.