Business
Western New England Bancorp, Inc. Reports Results for Three Months Ended March 31, 2022 and Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
WESTFIELD, Mass., April 26, 2022 (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., April 26, 2022 (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 months ended March 31, 2022. The Company reported net income of $5.3 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, for the three months ended March 31, 2022, as compared to net income of $5.8 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, for the three months ended March 31, 2021. On a linked quarter basis, net income was $5.3 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, as compared to net income of $6.2 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, for the three months ended December 31, 2021. The Company also announced that the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.06 per share on the Company’s common stock. The dividend will be payable on or about May 25, 2022 to shareholders of record on May 11, 2022. “We continue to build off a record year in 2021 and are pleased to announce strong first quarter results for the Company in 2022,” said James C. Hagan, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Notwithstanding a challenging economic and interest rate environment resulting in part from the ongoing global pandemic and geopolitical uncertainty, we remain optimistic about the Company’s growth opportunities in 2022. As a result of utilizing excess cash from our successful increase in core deposits, the Company continues to show strong loan growth in key loan categories. We are pleased to report that our total loan portfolio increased $80.8 million during the first quarter, or 4.4%, excluding $19.3 million in Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loans that were forgiven by the Small Business Administration (“SBA”). During the first quarter, we have seen the strongest growth from our commercial real estate lending portfolio. Additionally, during the first quarter, commercial real estate loans increased $59.5 million, or 6.1%, as we continued to add new customer relationships throughout New England and in key strategic lending areas. Despite customers continuing to use their accumulated cash to fund their operations, commercial and industrial loans continue to be added to our loan portfolio and remain a strategic priority. We continue to be mindful of economic conditions, such as inflation, supply chain iss...