Wauwatosa, WI – 1/26/2023 – Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: WSBF), holding company for WaterStone Bank, reported net income of $935,000, or $0.04 per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to $12.6 million, or $0.53 per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2021. Net income per diluted share was $0.89 for the twelve months ended December 31, 2022 compared to net income per diluted share of $2.96 for the twelve months ended December 31, 2021.

"The quarter was mixed as the community banking segment continued to achieve excellent loan growth while the mortgage banking segment lagged with lower volumes and declining margins,” said Douglas Gordon, Chief Executive Officer of Waterstone Financial, Inc. “Net interest income grew in the quarter as we added $156.0 million to the loan portfolio and efficiently used our cash as interest rates continued to rise. The mortgage banking segment continues to face significant challenges as a result of increases in mortgage rates year-over-year and the decline in affordable housing inventories. We are focused on controlling expenses and being prepared to capitalize when the mortgage market improves.”

Highlights of the Quarter Ended December 31, 2022

Waterstone Financial, Inc. (Consolidated)

• Consolidated net income of Waterstone Financial, Inc. totaled $935,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to $12.6 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Consolidated return on average assets was 0.19% for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to 2.22% for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Consolidated return on average equity was 0.99% for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 and 11.14% for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Dividends declared during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 totaled $0.20 per common share.
• We repurchased approximately 159,000 shares at a cost of $2.6 million, or $16.53 per share, during the quarter ended December 31, 2022.
• Nonperforming assets as percentage of total assets was 0.22% at December 31, 2022, 0.27% at September 30, 2022, and 0.26% at December 31, 2021.
• Past due loans as percentage of total loans was 0.41% at December 31, 2022, 0.48% at September 30, 2022, and 0.59% at December 31, 2021.
• Book value per share was $16.71 at December 31, 2022 and $17.45 at December 31, 2021. The decrease reflects an $0.79 per share impact resulting from an increase in the unrealized loss on available for sale securities.

Community Banking Segment

• Pre-tax income totaled $7.0 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, which represents a $1.4 million, or 16.4%, decrease compared to $8.4 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Net interest income totaled $15.7 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, which represents a $2.5 million, or 19.2%, increase compared to $13.2 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Average loans held for investment totaled $1.41 billion during the quarter ended December 31, 2022, which represents an increase of $201.9 million, or 16.7%, compared to $1.21 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2021. Average loans held for investment increased $102.1 million compared to $1.31 billion for the quarter ended September 30, 2022.
• The community banking segment purchased $112.0 million adjustable-rate loans that were originated by the mortgage banking segment during the quarter ended December 31, 2022. Other noninterest expense includes fees totaling $2.0 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 which were paid to the mortgage banking segment and eliminated on a consolidated basis.
• Net interest margin increased 82 basis points to 3.29% for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to 2.47% for the quarter ended December 31, 2021, which was a result of a decrease in the average balance of cash, as funds were utilized to fund loans held for investment, purchase investment securities and pay down borrowings. In addition, yields increased on loans receivable, loans held for sale, mortgage related securities, debt securities, federal funds sold and short term investments category. Net interest margin decreased five basis points compared to 3.34% for the quarter ended September 30, 2022, driven by an increase in weighted average cost of deposits and borrowings as the federal funds rate increases resulted in increased funding rates.
• The segment had a provision for credit losses - loans of $290,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to a negative provision for loan losses of $1.5 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021. The current quarter increase was primarily due to an increase in loans held for investment during the quarter. The provision for credit losses - unfunded commitments was $334,000 as the loan pipeline increased from the prior quarter end.
• The efficiency ratio was 54.49% for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to 53.02% for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Average deposits (excluding escrow accounts) totaled $1.21 billion during the quarter ended December 31, 2022, a decrease of $35.3 million, or 2.8%, compared to $1.25 billion during the quarter ended December 31, 2021. Average deposits increased $18.1 million, or 6.1% annualized compared to the $1.19 billion for the quarter ended September 30, 2022 due to an increase in certificate of deposits rates attracting more customers.
• Other noninterest expense increased $1.8 million to $2.5 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to $651,000 during the quarter ended December 31, 2021. The increase was driven by fees paid to the mortgage banking segment for the purchase of single-family adjustable rate mortgage loans. See the note on the loans purchased from the mortgage banking segment above. These fees are eliminated in the consolidated statements of income.

Mortgage Banking Segment

• Pre-tax loss totaled $6.5 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to $7.3 million of pre-tax income for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Loan originations decreased $446.5 million, or 45.0%, to $546.6 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to $993.1 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2021. Origination volume relative to purchase activity accounted for 95.6% of originations for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to 73.8% of total originations for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Mortgage banking non-interest income decreased $22.6 million, or 55.6%, to $18.1 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to $40.7 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Gross margin on loans sold decreased to 3.41% for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, compared to 4.18% for the quarter ended December 31, 2021.
• Total compensation, payroll taxes and other employee benefits decreased $10.5 million, or 37.6%, to $17.4 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to $27.9 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2021. The decrease primarily related to decreased commission expense and branch manager compensation driven by decreased loan origination volume and branch profitability as gross margins decreased.
• Other noninterest expense increased $1.1 million to $2.6 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 compared to $1.4 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2021. The increase related to an increase in provision of loan sale losses.
• During the year ended December 31, 2022 the segment has added 11 branches and a total of 130 loan origination personnel. Losses associated with these new branches totaled approximately $725,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 and $1.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. These branch losses are net of corporate revenue of approximately $641,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2022 and $1.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022.

About Waterstone Financial, Inc.

Waterstone Financial, Inc. is the savings and loan holding company for WaterStone Bank. WaterStone Bank was established in 1921 and offers a full suite of personal and business banking products. The Bank has branches in Wauwatosa/State St, Brookfield, Fox Point/North Shore, Franklin/Hales Corners, Germantown/Menomonee Falls, Greenfield/Loomis Rd, Milwaukee/Oklahoma Ave, Oak Creek/27th St, Oak Creek/Howell Ave, Oconomowoc/Lake Country, Pewaukee, Waukesha, West Allis/Greenfield Ave, and West Allis/National Ave, Wisconsin. WaterStone Bank is the parent company to Waterstone Mortgage, which has the ability to lend in 48 states. For more information about WaterStone Bank, go to http://www.wsbonline.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements or information that may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding expected financial and operating activities and results that are preceded by, followed by, or that include words such as “may,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates” or “believes.” Any such statements are based upon current expectations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties and are subject to important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include changes in interest rates; demand for products and services; the degree of competition by traditional and nontraditional competitors; changes in banking regulation or actions by bank regulators; changes in tax laws; the impact of technological advances; governmental and regulatory policy changes; the outcomes of contingencies; trends in customer behavior as well as their ability to repay loans; changes in local real estate values; changes in the national and local economies, including significant disruption to financial market and other economic activity caused by the outbreak of COVID-19; and other factors, including risk factors referenced in Item 1A. Risk Factors in Waterstone’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and as may be described from time to time in Waterstone’s subsequent SEC filings, which factors are incorporated herein by reference. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect only Waterstone’s belief as of the date of this press release.

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