Flushing Financial reports Q1 EPS 14c, consensus 14c

In Q1: Net interest margin decreased 21 bps y/y and 23 bps q/q to 2.06%; Provision for credit losses was $0.6M vs. $7.5M million in Q1 of 2023 and $1.0M in Q4 of 2023. CEO John R. Buran says: “We take pride in what we believe is our low risk credit profile that has performed well over our 95-year history. While there have been increased concerns about commercial real estate loans, especially New York City office and rent regulated multifamily exposure, hallmarks of our risk averse credit culture are demonstrated by only $4,000 of net charge-offs, 24 bps of 30-89 day delinquencies to gross loans, and decreased criticized and classified loans of 23% and flat NPAs during 1Q24. The drivers of this excellent credit performance are centered in our conservative underwriting with 89% of the portfolio secured by real estate, average LTV ratios of less than 36%, multifamily and investor commercial real estate weighted average DCRs of 1.8x, and strong sponsor support. Our exposure to New York City office buildings is very low – approximately 0.5% of total loans, all of which are performing. Our multifamily portfolio has only 18 bps of NPLs, 41 bps of 30-89 day delinquencies, and 54 bps of criticized and classified loans. Additionally, over 99% of our real estate loans that repriced in 1Q24 are current. Our conservative lending profile has served us well. We believe the foundation for our long-term success is pillared by our four areas of focus, which include 1) increasing NIM and reducing volatility; 2) maintaining credit discipline; 3) preserving strong liquidity and capital; and 4) bending the expense curve. While there is more work to do, we continue to make progress and are committed to achieving these goals.”