Business
Western New England Bancorp, Inc. Reports Results for Three Months and Year Ended December 31, 2023 and Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
WESTFIELD, Mass., Jan. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company” or “WNEB”) (NasdaqGS: WNEB), the holding company for
About this update from Western New England Bancorp, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"WESTFIELD, Mass., Jan. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company” or “WNEB”) (NasdaqGS: WNEB), the holding company for Westfield Bank (the “Bank”), announced today the unaudited results of operations for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023. For the three months ended December 31, 2023, the Company reported net income of $2.5 million, or $0.12 per diluted share, compared to net income of $9.0 million, or $0.42 per diluted share, for the three months ended December 31, 2022. On a linked quarter basis, net income was $2.5 million, or $0.12 per diluted share, as compared to net income of $4.5 million, or $0.21 per diluted share, for the three months ended September 30, 2023. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2023, net income was $15.1 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, compared to net income of $25.9 million, or $1.18 per diluted share, for the twelve months ended December 31, 2022. The Company also announced that the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.07 per share on the Company’s common stock. The dividend will be payable on or about February 21, 2024 to shareholders of record on February 7, 2024. James C. Hagan, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are pleased with our fourth quarter results, showing loan growth with increasing loan yields. Total loans increased $35.9 million, or 1.8%, since December 31, 2022, while classified assets decreased 38.3% from December 31, 2022. The Company also maintained a strong liquidity position, covering approximately 146% of uninsured deposits as of December 31, 2023. Additionally, during the twelve months ended December 31, 2023, we repurchased 649,744 shares of our common stock at an average price per share of $7.20. We believe that share repurchases represent a prudent use of capital, especially when they are accretive to book value. Management has and will continue to remain focused on increasing shareholder value through various capital management strategies.” Hagan concluded, “Our team remains committed to our community and to our existing and new customers. We continue to be focused on true relationship banking, while providing continued access to local decision makers in order to meet the financial needs of all our customers. We believe our various growth, customer and expense initiative...