CEO Lane Lawson commented, "Our new headquarters location in downtown Santa Cruz and our first loan production office in Silicon Valley have allowed us to increase our visibility and enhance our profile in both markets. This has led directly to our growth in assets and profitability."
These results represent the Bank's 32nd successive quarter of profitable operations. Highlights for the second quarter results include: Loans increased by $30.5 million, or 20% year over year; and deposits increased $40.8 million, or 24% compared to the quarter-ended June 30, 2016.
In April, DepositAccounts.com ranked Lighthouse Bank as the 5th healthiest bank in the nation in 2017. This represents the second consecutive year that the Bank has been ranked as the 5th healthiest, of the approximately 6,000 Federally-Insured banking institutions in the nation.
Ken Tumin, founding editor of DepositAccounts.com commented, "Lighthouse Bank again this year achieved top scores in all categories assessed, and it has established itself as a consistent elite performer in our bank health rankings. To be ranked in the top 5 out of 6,000 banks in consecutive years is quite a testament to the foundation of strength and stability that Lighthouse's management and employees have been able to build."
For the quarter-ended June 30, 2017, total shareholders' equity increased by $986 thousand to $32.6 million. Year-over-year, shareholders' equity increased $3.5 million, or 12%.
In May, 2017 the Bank paid its fourth $0.08 per share quarterly cash dividend to shareholders, following four previous consecutive quarterly cash dividends of $0.075 per share. In early 2015, the Bank paid a special $0.40 per share cash dividend to shareholders, which followed two stock dividends granted in 2011 and 2013. Since January 2015, the Bank has paid $2,332,722 in cash dividends to shareholders.
During the quarter-ended June 30, 2017, the Bank started the tenant improvements for its first full-service branch location in Silicon Valley, tentatively scheduled to open in September 2017. The Silicon Valley location, which opened as a Loan Production Office in December 2016 at 19240 Stevens Creek Blvd. in Cupertino, is adjacent to the new Main St. Cupertino Business Center and close to the 3.1 million sq. ft. Apple headquarters building currently under construction. The contiguous nature of the Silicon Valley market to that of Santa Cruz, staff experience in that market, as well as community bank consolidations, have combined to provide a unique growth opportunity for Lighthouse Bank in Silicon Valley.
Lighthouse Bank's consistently strong financial results continue to place it at the top of the industry in a variety of categories including asset quality, capital adequacy, return on average assets, return on average equity and operational efficiency. SNL Financial ranked Lighthouse Bank as the 29th highest performing community bank in the nation based on 2016 performance of approximately 5100 banks of asset size under $1 billion. Financial Management Consulting Group (FMC) rated the Bank among the highest performing banks in the state, as 12th out of 171 California banks in 2016 based on our overall performance.
For twenty consecutive quarters, the Bank has been rated by Bauer Financial as Five-Star "Superior" for strong financial performance, the top rating given by the independent bank rating firm. Lighthouse Bank has received its sixth consecutive designation of Super Premier performing bank by The Findley Reports, Inc. based upon 2016 financial performance. Lighthouse Bank has no financial relationship with any of these rating agencies.
ABOUT LIGHTHOUSE BANK:
Lighthouse Bank is a highly rated locally owned and operated full-service commercial bank. The Bank offers a full array of banking products and services to businesses, professionals, individuals, developers and commercial property owners. Lighthouse Bank is dedicated to providing exceptional personalized service and access to decision makers who are always close at hand. The Bank offers unique services such as worldwide surcharge free ATM/Debit Cards, complimentary business courier service, and remote deposit capture, allowing the Bank to expand its geographical reach throughout Santa Cruz County and the Silicon Valley.
