Horizon Bancorp, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Results, Successfully Executes Balance Sheet Restructuring for Future Earnings Growth

Michigan City, Indiana, January 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – (NASDAQ GS: HBNC) – Horizon Bancorp, Inc. (“Horizon” or the “Company”) announced its unaudited financial results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023.

“Horizon had a very positive and productive fourth quarter, led by strong loan growth, consistent core deposit balances, stabilized net interest margin and excellent asset quality,” President and Chief Executive Officer Thomas M. Prame said. “Additionally, we closed out the year with a successful restructure of our balance sheet, providing abundant liquidity to deploy into higher yielding assets and drive meaningful earnings growth in future quarters. Over the quarter, the team made significant progress building out our leasing platform, and we expect to see positive impacts from this effort in the second quarter of 2024. The franchise is experiencing positive momentum in its core business models and we are very optimistic about our position as we enter 2024 and our ability to create value for our shareholders and clients.” 

Fourth Quarter 2023 Highlights

• Commercial loan growth totaled $85.7 million, increasing by 13.1% annualized during the quarter and 8.4% since December 31, 2022. Total loans were $4.42 billion at period end, increasing by 5.2% annualized during the quarter and 6.1% since December 31, 2022.
  

• Deposits remained resilient, totaling $5.7 billion at period end, compared to $5.7 billion on September 30, 2023. Brokered deposits and wholesale borrowing levels were consistent with third quarter balances.
  

• Net interest margin increased to 2.43% compared to 2.41% in the linked quarter. Interest income was $42.3 million compared to $42.1 million in the linked quarter.
  

• Cash totaled $519.4 million at period end, providing significant flexibility to drive future net interest margin growth through deployment into higher yielding assets throughout 2024.
  

• Excellent asset quality with net charge–offs representing 0.02% of average loans for the quarter, delinquent loans representing 0.38% of total loans at period end and non–performing loans representing 0.44% of total loans at period end, with the increase in provision primarily attributable to loan growth.
  

• In December, the Company announced a balance sheet repositioning that included the sale of $382.7 million in lower-yielding securities and the surrender of $112.8 million of bank owned life insurance (“BOLI”) policies. For the quarter, the Company recorded a net loss of $25.2 million, or $0.58 per diluted share. Excluding the $38.7 million after-tax impact of the balance sheet repositioning and approximately $705,000 in extraordinary expenses associated with previously disclosed staffing changes, the launch of Horizon Equipment Finance and the expansion of the Bank's treasury management capabilities, adjusted net income was $14.1 million, or $0.33 per diluted share, in the quarter. (See the “Non–GAAP Reconciliation of Net Income” table below.) This compared to third quarter 2023 net income of $16.2 million, or $0.37 per diluted share.
  

• Horizon continues to maintain cash at the holding company level representing approximately eight quarters of dividend payments and fixed costs.