RUSTON, La., July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Century Next Financial Corporation (the "Company") (OTCQX: CTUY), the holding company of Century Next Bank, with $923.6 million in assets, today announced financial results for the 2nd quarter ended June 30, 2025.
Financial Performance
For the three months ended June 30, 2025, the Company had net income after tax of $3.94 million compared to net income of $3.06 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024, an increase of $873,000 or 28.5%. Earnings per share (EPS) for the three months ended June 30, 2025 were $2.16 per basic and $2.14 per diluted share compared to $1.70 per basic and diluted share reported for the three months ended June 30, 2024.
For the six months ended June 30, 2025, the Company had net income after tax of $7.39 million compared to net income of $5.73 million for the six months ended June 30, 2024, an increase of $1.66 million or 29.0%. Earnings per share (EPS) for the six months ended June 30, 2025 were $4.05 per basic and $4.02 per diluted share compared to $3.18 per basic and diluted share reported for the six months ended June 30, 2024. Both the three- and six-month periods ended June 30, 2025 were a record for net income and earnings per share.
Balance Sheet
Overall, total assets increased by $54.2 million or 6.24% to $923.6 million at June 30, 2025 compared to $869.4 million at December 31, 2024.
Total cash and cash equivalents increased from $125.7 million at December 31, 2024 to $130.8 million at June 30, 2025 for an increase of $5.1 million or 4.08%. Investment securities, primarily available-for-sale, increased by $37.5 million to $136 million at June 30, 2025 from $98.5 million at December 31, 2024. The growth in cash and cash equivalents and available-for-sale investment securities for the six months ended June 30, 2025 continues to strengthen the Company's strong liquidity position.
Loans, net of deferred fees and costs and allowance for credit losses, including loans held for sale, increased $12.5 million or 2.07% for the six months ended June 30, 2025 compared to December 31, 2024. Total net loans at June 30, 2025 were $618 million compared to $605.4 million at December 31, 2024. Of total net loans outstanding for the period, loans secured by residential construction increased $7.3 million followed by $6.6 million in land, $5.8 million in residential 1-4 family, $2.8 million in consumer loans non-real estate, $1.5 million in multi-family real estate, and $1.2 million in residential 1-4 family - held for sale for the six months ended June 30, 2025. The increases were offset by decreases of $7.1 million in commercial non-real estate loans, $2.6 million in agriculture real estate loans, $2.4 million in commercial real estate, and $529,000 in home equity lines of credit for the six months ended June 30, 2025.
Deposit growth was strong for the six months ended June 30, 2025 as total deposits increased by $45.9 million or 6% to $816.6 million at June 30, 2025 compared to $770.7 million at December 31, 2024. Noninterest-bearing checking increased $61.1 million and savings deposits increased $490,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2025. The increases were offset by decreases of $7.6 million in money market deposits, $7.2 million in interest-bearing checking deposits, $865,000 in time deposits for the six months ended June 30, 2025.
Total long-term borrowings remained the same at $8.5 million at June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024.
Income Statement
Net interest income was $9.73 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $8.12 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024 for an increase of $1.61 million, or 19.8%. Net interest income was $18.82 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $15.72 million for the six months ended June 30, 2024 for an increase of $3.1 million, or 19.7%.
The following table shows key operating ratios for the three- and six-month periods ended June 30, 2025 compared to the same periods ended June 30, 2024:
| Three Months Ended June 30 | Six Months Ended June 30 | ||||||||||||||
| Select Operating Ratios | 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||
| Average Yield on Interest-Earning Assets | 5.99 | % | 6.16 | % | 5.96 | % | 6.14 | % | |||||||
| Average Cost of Interest-Bearing Liabilities | 3.12 | % | 3.41 | % | 3.11 | % | 3.39 | % | |||||||
| Net Interest Margin | 4.40 | % | 4.16 | % | 4.33 | % | 4.12 | % | |||||||
The yield on earning assets declined slightly and cost of interest-bearing liabilities improved modestly in both the three- and six-month periods ended June, 30, 2025. The net interest margin improved modestly in both the three- and six-month periods ended June 30, 2025 compared to the same periods in 2024.
For the three months ended June 30, 2025, a provision for credit losses of $223,000 was expensed compared to $150,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2024. For the six months ended June 30, 2025, a provision for credit losses of $298,000 compared to $150,000 was expensed for the six months ended June 30, 2024.
Total non-interest income was $916,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $914,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2024, an increase of $2,000 or 0.2%. Total non-interest income was $1.69 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $1.73 million for the six months ended June 30, 2024, a decrease of $39,000 or 2.3%.
Total non-interest expense increased by $416,000 or 8.2% to $5.47 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $5.05 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024. Total non-interest expense increased by $700,000 or 6.9% to $10.88 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $10.18 million for the six months ended June 30, 2024. The increases in both the three- and six-month periods ended June 30, 2025 was primarily due to increases in salaries and benefits, other operating, occupancy and equipment, and data processing expenses as compared to the same periods in 2024.
The Company's efficiency ratio, a measure of expense as a percent of total income, decreased to 51.35% for the year three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to 55.90% for the three months ended June 30, 2024. For the six months ended June 30, 2025, the efficiency ratio decreased to 53.06% compared to 58.35% for the six months ended June 30, 2024. The increase in net interest income for the comparative periods was the primary driver of this reduction of the efficiency ratio.
Other Financial Information
Nonperforming assets, including loans past due 90 days or more, nonaccrual loans, and other foreclosed assets, decreased from $3.98 million at December 31, 2024 to $3.38 million at June 30, 2025, a decrease of $593,000. Total non-performing assets were 0.37% and 0.46% of totals assets as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, respectively.
Allowance for credit losses under CECL was $6.6 million or 1.06% of total loans at June 30, 2025 compared to $6.54 million or 1.07% of total loans at December 31, 2024. Net charge-offs for the six months ended June 30, 2025 were $234,000, compared net recoveries of $39,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2024. The ratio of net charge-off to average loans outstanding was 0.038% at June 30, 2025 compared to the ratio of net recoveries to average loans outstanding was -0.007% for the same period of 2024.
Company Information
Century Next Financial Corporation is the holding company for Century Next Bank (the "Bank") which conducts business from its main office in Ruston, Louisiana. The Company was formed in 2010 and is subject to the regulatory oversight of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary and is an insured federally-chartered covered savings association subject to the regulatory oversight of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Bank was established in 1905 and is headquartered in Ruston, Louisiana. The Bank is a full-service bank with four locations in Louisiana including two banking offices in Ruston, one banking office in Monroe, one banking office in West Monroe, and three locations in Arkansas including two banking offices in Crossett and one banking office in Hamburg. The Bank emphasizes professional and personal banking service directed primarily to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, and individuals. The Bank provides a full range of banking services including its primary business of real estate lending to residential and commercial customers.
Statements contained in this news release which are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. They often include words like "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," and "intend" or future or conditional verbs such as "will," "would," "should," "could," or "may." We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements
| Century Next Financial Corporation and Subsidiary Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (unaudited) | |||||||
| (In thousands, except per share data) | |||||||
| June 30, 2025 | December 31, 2024 | ||||||
| ASSETS | |||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 130,804 | $ | 125,675 | |||
| Investment securities | 136,875 | 100,623 | |||||
| Loans, net | 617,973 | 605,439 | |||||
| Other assets | 37,973 | 37,663 | |||||
| TOTAL ASSETS | $ | 923,625 | $ | 869,400 | |||
| LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY | |||||||
| Deposits | $ | 816,636 | $ | 770,710 | |||
| Long-term borrowings | 8,454 | 8,454 | |||||
| Other liabilities | 7,424 | 7,174 | |||||
| Total Liabilities | 832,514 | 786,338 | |||||
| Stockholders' equity | 91,111 | 83,062 | |||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY | $ | 923,625 | $ | 869,400 | |||
| Book Value per share | $ | 49.20 | $ | 45.10 | |||
| Tangible Book Value per share | $ | 47.56 | $ | 43.38 | |||
| Century Next Financial Corporation and Subsidiary Consolidated Statements of Income (unaudited) | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except per share data) | |||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended June 30 | Six Months Ended June 30 | ||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||
| Interest Income | $ | 13,252 | $ | 12,019 | $ | 25,868 | $ | 23,430 | |||||||
| Interest Expense | 3,522 | 3,898 | 7,049 | 7,710 | |||||||||||
| Net Interest Income | 9,730 | 8,121 | 18,819 | 15,720 | |||||||||||
| Provision for Credit Losses | 223 | 150 | 298 | 150 | |||||||||||
| Net Interest Income after Provision for Credit Losses | 9,507 | 7,971 | 18,521 | 15,570 | |||||||||||
| Noninterest Income | 916 | 914 | 1,686 | 1,725 | |||||||||||
| Noninterest Expense | 5,467 | 5,051 | 10,880 | 10,180 | |||||||||||
| Income Before Taxes | 4,956 | 3,834 | 9,327 | 7,115 | |||||||||||
| Provision For Income Taxes | 1,019 | 770 | 1,939 | 1,390 | |||||||||||
| NET INCOME | $ | 3,937 | $ | 3,064 | $ | 7,388 | $ | 5,725 | |||||||
| EARNINGS PER SHARE | |||||||||||||||
| Basic | $ | 2.16 | $ | 1.70 | $ | 4.05 | $ | 3.18 | |||||||
| Diluted | $ | 2.14 | $ | 1.70 | $ | 4.02 | $ | 3.18 | |||||||
| Key Ratios: | |||||||||||||||
| Annualized Return on Average Assets | 1.63 | % | 1.44 | % | |||||||||||
| Annualized Return on Average Equity | 17.02 | % | 15.42 | % | |||||||||||
| Annualized Net Interest Margin | 4.33 | % | 4.12 | % | |||||||||||
| Efficiency Ratio | 53.06 | % | 58.35 | % | |||||||||||
Century Next Financial Corporation Contact Information:
William D. Hogan, President & Chief Executive Officer or
Mark A. Taylor, CPA CGMA, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
(318) 255-3733
Company Website: www.cnext.bank
