Ameris Bancorp (ABCB) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the Ameris Bancorp third-quarter conference call. (Operator Instructions) Please note, this event is being recorded.

大家好，歡迎參加 Ameris Bancorp 第三季電話會議。（操作說明）請注意，本次活動正在錄影。

I would now like to turn the conference over to Nicole Stokes, CFO. Please go ahead.

現在我將把會議交給財務長妮可·斯托克斯。請繼續。

Great. Thank you, Valentina, and thank you to all who have joined our call today. During the call, we will be referencing the press release and the financial highlights that are available on the Investor Relations section of our website at amerisbank.com.

偉大的。謝謝瓦倫蒂娜，也謝謝今天所有參加我們電話會議的人。在電話會議期間，我們將參考新聞稿和財務亮點，這些內容可在我們網站 amerisbank.com 的投資者關係部分查閱。

I'm joined today by Palmer Proctor, our CEO; and Doug Strange, our Chief Credit Officer. Palmer will begin with some opening comments, and then I will discuss the results of our financials before we open up for Q&A.

今天與我一同出席的有我們的執行長帕爾默·普羅克特和首席信貸官道格·斯特蘭奇。帕爾默將首先作一些開場白，然後我將討論我們的財務結果，之後我們將進入問答環節。

Before we begin, I'll remind you that our comments may include forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. The actual results could vary materially. We list some of the factors that might cause results to differ in our press release and in our SEC filings, which are available on our website.

在開始之前，我要提醒各位，我們的評論可能包含前瞻性陳述。這些聲明存在風險和不確定性。實際結果可能與此有很大差異。我們在新聞稿和提交給美國證券交易委員會的文件中列出了一些可能導致結果出現差異的因素，這些文件可在我們的網站上查閱。

We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, early developments, or otherwise, except as required by law. Also during the call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures in reference to the company's performance. You can see our reconciliation of these measures and GAAP financial measures in the appendix to our presentation.

除法律要求外，我們不承擔因新資訊、早期進展或其他原因而更新任何前瞻性聲明的義務。此外，在電話會議期間，我們還將討論與公司績效相關的某些非GAAP財務指標。您可以在我們的簡報附錄中看到我們對這些指標和 GAAP 財務指標的調整表。

With that, I'll turn it over to Palmer for comments.

接下來，我將把發言權交給帕爾默，請他發表意見。

Thank you, Nicole, and good morning, everyone. We appreciate you taking the time to join our earnings call today.

謝謝你，妮可，大家早安。感謝您今天抽空參加我們的財報電話會議。

Third-quarter results again beat expectations with above-peer performance across the board, including return on assets, PPNR ROA, return on tangible common equity, net interest margin, and efficiency ratio. Two of our top focuses have long been growing our core deposit base and tangible book value per share.

第三季業績再次超出預期，各項指標均高於同行，包括資產回報率、淨利潤率、有形普通股回報率、淨息差和效率比率。我們長期以來的兩大重點是擴大核心存款基礎和提高每股有形帳面價值。

I'm proud to see our deposit growth at 5% annualized and tangible book value per share growth at over 15% annualized, both very strong metrics. We remain focused on generating revenue growth and positive operating leverage. This is evidenced by our 18% annualized revenue growth in the quarter.

我很自豪地看到我們的存款年化成長率達到 5%，每股有形帳面價值年化成長率超過 15%，這兩個指標都非常強勁。我們將繼續專注於實現收入成長和積極的經營槓桿作用。本季我們實現了 18% 的年化營收成長，這證明了這一點。

And when coupled with a modest decline in expenses and slight increase in margin, pushed our efficiency ratio below 50%. Our margin continued to expand during the quarter, while we grew loans 4% annualized, which is within our mid-single-digit guidance. Our 3.80% NIM remains above most peer levels, particularly thanks to our strong 30% level of noninterest-bearing deposits.

再加上費用略有下降和利潤率略有上升，使得我們的效率比率低於 50%。本季我們的利潤率持續擴大，貸款年化成長率為 4%，符合我們先前設定的個位數中段成長目標。我們的淨利差為 3.80%，高於大多數同業水平，這主要得益於我們高達 30% 的無息存款。

Capital ratios grew again in the quarter, which positions us well for future growth opportunities. Our third-quarter earnings and capital generation increased our common equity Tier 1 to 13.2% and TCE to 11.3%. Asset quality remained stable with net charge-offs and NPAs, excluding government-guaranteed mortgages at low levels.

本季資本充足率再次成長，這為我們未來的成長機會奠定了良好的基礎。第三季收益和資本產生使我們的普通股一級資本充足率提高到 13.2%，TCE 提高到 11.3%。資產品質維持穩定，淨沖銷和不良資產（不包括政府擔保抵押貸款）處於較低水準。

We grew tangible book value this quarter by over 15% annualized, almost $43 per share. And we're active in repurchasing stock, buying back $8.5 million. Our CRE and construction concentrations remain low at 261% and 42%, respectively. Our 4% annualized loan growth was driven mostly by a good mix of C&I and CRE.

本季我們的有形帳面價值年化成長超過 15%，接近每股 43 美元。我們正在積極回購股票，回購了價值 850 萬美元的股票。我們的商業房地產和建築業集中度分別保持在較低水平，為 261% 和 42%。我們4%的年化貸款成長率主要得益於工商業貸款和商業房地產貸款的良好組合。

Our loan portfolio production also topped $2 billion in the quarter, the best level we've seen since 2022. And deposits grew at a similar pace of 5% annualized with noninterest-bearing deposits remaining over 30%. Our bankers are well positioned to take advantage of growth opportunities and disruption within our attractive Southeastern markets.

本季我們的貸款組合產值也突破了 20 億美元，這是自 2022 年以來我們所見過的最佳水準。存款增速與年化 5% 的增速相近，其中不計息存款佔比維持在 30% 以上。我們的銀行家們已做好充分準備，能夠掌握我們極具吸引力的東南市場中的成長機會和變革機會。

Overall, we continue to stay focused on what we can control. When I look out at the end of 2025 and toward 2026, I'm very encouraged as we continue to benefit from a history of notable tangible book value growth as good stewards of shareholder value, a granular deposit base, a robust margin and diversified revenue stream, strong capital and liquidity, a healthy allowance and asset quality, and a proven culture of expense control and positive operating leverage, and a notable scarcity value given our size and scale in the Southeast top markets, which really allows us to take advantage of the banking disruption Southeast continues to experience.

總的來說，我們將繼續專注於我們能夠控制的事情。展望 2025 年底和 2026 年，我感到非常鼓舞，因為我們將繼續受益於以往顯著的帳面價值增長（作為股東價值的良好管理者）、分散的存款基礎、穩健的利潤率和多元化的收入來源、強大的資本和流動性、健康的撥備和資產質量，以及行之有效的費用控制和積極的經營槓桿文化。鑑於我們在東南地區頂級市場的規模和實力，我們擁有顯著的稀缺價值，這使我們能夠真正利用東南地區持續經歷的銀行業變革。

So overall, I'm very optimistic and confident about our franchise as we near the end of 2025 and look forward to 2026 and beyond. I'll stop there and turn it over to Nicole now to discuss our financial results in more detail.

總的來說，我對我們特許經營權的前景非常樂觀和充滿信心，尤其是在 2025 年即將結束之際，並期待著 2026 年及以後的發展。我就說到這裡，現在把麥克風交給妮可，讓她更詳細地討論一下我們的財務表現。

Great. Thank you, Palmer. We reported net income of $106 million or $1.54 per diluted share in the third quarter. As Palmer mentioned, our profitability remained at levels well ahead of the industry, with our return on assets at 1.56% and our return on tangible common equity at 14.6%, both very robust levels.

偉大的。謝謝你，帕爾默。第三季淨利為 1.06 億美元，即每股攤薄收益 1.54 美元。正如帕爾默所提到的，我們的獲利能力一直遠超行業平均水平，資產回報率為 1.56%，有形普通股回報率為 14.6%，這兩個指標都處於非常強勁的水平。

This quarter, our PPNR ROA was at 2.35%, which is an improvement from 2.18% last quarter. Our efficiency ratio improved to 49.19% this quarter compared to 51.63% last quarter, as we saw a modest decrease in expenses, but a really strong 17.8% annualized revenue growth, which is what fueled that positive operating leverage.

本季度，我們的 PPNR ROA 為 2.35%，比上季度的 2.18% 有所提高。本季我們的效率比率從上季的 51.63% 提高到 49.19%，因為我們的支出略有下降，但年化收入成長了 17.8%，這推動了積極的經營槓桿。

Capital levels continue to increase with our tangible book value per share grew to $42.90 a share, which was a strong 15.2% annualized growth or $1.58 per share in the quarter. Our tangible common equity ratio increased to 11.31%. We repurchased about $8.5 million of common stock. That was about 126,000 shares at an average price of $67.36 during the quarter.

資本水準持續成長，每股有形帳面價值成長至 42.90 美元，本季實現了強勁的 15.2% 年化成長，即每股成長 1.58 美元。我們的有形普通股權益比率提高至 11.31%。我們回購了約 850 萬美元的普通股。該季度成交量約為 126,000 股，平均價格為每股 67.36 美元。

Our Board recently also approved a new share repurchase plan of $200 million, which is double our last authorization of $100 million. Our strong revenue growth was driven by increases in both net interest income and fee income.

我們的董事會最近也批准了一項新的股票回購計劃，金額為 2 億美元，是我們上次授權的 1 億美元的兩倍。我們強勁的收入成長得益於淨利息收入和手續費收入的雙雙成長。

Our spread income grew by $6 million in the quarter or 10.5% annualized. That growth came from interest income growth of $7 million, which outpaced our interest expense growth of only $1 million. Our net interest margin continued to expand, up 3 basis points to a strong 3.80%. And remember, that's a core margin as it includes zero accretion.

本季我們的利差收入成長了 600 萬美元，年化成長率為 10.5%。這一增長來自利息收入增長 700 萬美元，超過了利息支出增長 100 萬美元。我們的淨利差持續擴大，上升 3 個基點至強勁的 3.80%。請記住，這是核心邊界，因為它不包括零吸積。

The NIM expansion this quarter really came from a 2-basis-point positive impact on the asset side and a 1-basis-point benefit from the funding side. We continue to believe we'll have some slight margin compression over the next few quarters due to the expected pressure on deposit costs as we see loan growth really pick up in 2026.

本季淨利差擴張實際上來自資產端 2 個基點的正面影響和融資端 1 個基點的收益。我們仍然認為，由於預計到 2026 年貸款成長將真正加速，存款成本將面臨壓力，未來幾季我們的利潤率將略有下降。

We continue to be fairly neutral on asset sensitivity. Noninterest income increased $7.4 million this quarter, mostly from better equipment finance fees and also a $1.6 million nonrecurring gain on securities. Our mortgage production was approximately $1.1 billion, with mortgage gain on sale at 2.20%.

我們對資產敏感度仍然保持相當中立的態度。本季非利息收入增加 740 萬美元，主要來自設備融資費用的增加，以及證券交易的 160 萬美元非經常性收益。我們的抵押貸款發放額約為 11 億美元，抵押貸款出售收益率為 2.20%。

Our total noninterest expense decreased about $700,000 in the quarter, mostly driven by lower compensation costs in the lines of business, offset by some increased incentives and benefits in the Banking division. And as I previously mentioned, our efficiency ratio was strong at 49.19%.

本季我們的非利息支出總額減少了約 70 萬美元，主要原因是各業務線的薪酬成本降低，但銀行部門的一些激勵和福利增加抵消了這一降幅。正如我之前提到的，我們的效率比率高達 49.19%。

While we did have positive operating leverage this quarter, the expanded net interest margin and noninterest income growth was the real driver of that lower efficiency ratio and not necessarily an expense savings initiative. And I do anticipate the efficiency ratio to return above 50% in the fourth quarter.

雖然本季我們確實實現了正向經營槓桿，但淨利差擴大和非利息收入成長才是導致效率比率下降的真正驅動因素，而並非一定是節約開支的舉措。我預計第四季效率比率將恢復到 50% 以上。

During the third quarter, our provision for credit losses was $22.6 million, with over half of that provision related to reserves for unfunded commitments, which is a really positive sign for our future loan growth potential. Our reserve remained strong at 1.62%, the same as last quarter.

第三季度，我們的信貸損失準備金為 2,260 萬美元，其中超過一半的準備金與未兌現承諾的準備金有關，這對我們未來的貸款成長潛力來說是一個非常積極的信號。我們的儲備金維持在1.62%的穩健水平，與上季持平。

Overall, asset quality trends remain good with nonperforming assets, net charge-offs in both classifieds and criticized, all remaining low for the quarter. Annualized net charge-offs were stable at 14 basis points. Looking at our balance sheet, we ended the quarter with $27.1 billion of total assets compared to $26.7 billion last quarter.

整體而言，資產品質趨勢依然良好，不良資產、分類資產和不良資產的淨沖銷額在本季均維持較低水準。年化淨沖銷額穩定在 14 個基點。從我們的資產負債表來看，本季末我們的總資產為 271 億美元，而上一季為 267 億美元。

Earning assets increased $470 million or 7.6% annualized, with the bond portfolio growing $287 million and loans growing $217 million or about 4% annualized, which is in line with our loan growth guidance. Loan growth was mostly from C&I and investor CRE this quarter.

獲利資產增加 4.7 億美元，年化成長率為 7.6%，其中債券組合成長 2.87 億美元，貸款成長 2.17 億美元，年化成長率約為 4%，這與我們的貸款成長預期相符。本季貸款成長主要來自工商業貸款和投資者商業房地產貸款。

Deposits increased $295 million, with really strong growth in our core bank of $355 million, a small increase in broker deposits of $67 million, and those were offset by a continued seasonal decline in those cyclical municipal deposits of $127 million.

存款增加了 2.95 億美元，其中核心銀行存款成長強勁，達到 3.55 億美元，經紀存款略有成長，達到 6,700 萬美元，但這些成長被週期性市政存款持續季節性下降 1.27 億美元所抵消。

We were able to maintain our noninterest-bearing deposits at over 30%, finishing the quarter at 30.4%. And our brokered CDs represent only 5% of total deposits. We continue to anticipate loan and deposit growth going forward in the mid-single-digit range and expect that longer-term deposit growth will be the governor of our loan growth.

我們得以將無息存款維持在 30% 以上，本季末達到 30.4%。我們代理的定期存款僅佔總存款的 5%。我們繼續預期未來貸款和存款成長率將保持在中等個位數水平，並預期長期存款成長將決定貸款成長。

So with that, I'll wrap it up and turn the call back over to our operator for any questions from the group.

那麼，我就說到這裡，把電話轉回給我們的接線生，回答大家的任何問題。

(Operator Instructions) David Feaster, Raymond James.

（操作說明）David Feaster，Raymond James。

Hey, good morning, everybody.

嘿，大家早安。

Good morning, David.

早安，大衛。

I wanted to start maybe on the loan side. It sounds like production remains pretty strong. We saw unfunded commitments increase. I'm curious -- maybe first, just touching on demand, how is demand in the pipeline trending as we look forward?

我想先從貸款方面入手。聽起來生產情況依然相當強勁。我們看到未落實資金的承諾增加。我很好奇──或許首先，就需求而言，展望未來，在研產品的需求趨勢如何？

I know you reiterated the mid-single-digit guidance. But just kind of curious about the pipeline and the complexion of that. And then just how payoffs and paydowns are trending, and how that's impacting growth near term.

我知道你重申了個位數中段的預期。我只是有點好奇這條管道及其運作方式。然後是收益和支出的趨勢，以及這對近期成長的影響。

Yeah. I think one of the things that drives our optimism for the fourth quarter is the demand. And that's really across the board in all of our verticals that we're seeing. I will tell you, payoffs for the industry remain pretty steady. And we'll see the same thing in the fourth quarter.

是的。我認為推動我們對第四季前景樂觀的因素之一是需求。而且這種情況在我們所有垂直領域都普遍存在。我可以告訴你，該產業的收益一直相當穩定。第四季我們也會看到同樣的情況。

But in terms of the demand and the outlook going forward, that's where we really garner most of our optimism as we look into the end of '25 and into '26. So all in, payoffs, it's just a necessary evil, if you will, but it's also a sign of a healthy market. So we continue to remain very bullish.

但就未來的需求和前景而言，當我們展望 2025 年底和 2026 年時，我們才真正感到樂觀。總而言之，收益，如果你願意的話，只能說是一種必要的惡，但這也是市場健康的標誌。因此，我們依然非常看好這家公司。

Okay. And maybe just staying on that kind of -- to some degree, could you touch on competition and how the landscape is today? On one hand, you touched on a lot of the disruption and the opportunities that come out of that.

好的。或許可以繼續探討一下—在某種程度上，您能否談談競爭以及當前的競爭格局？一方面，你談到了許多顛覆性變革以及由此帶來的機會。

But at the same time, everybody is -- it seems like competition is heating up for deals. Curious, some of the push-pull between those dynamics and where you're seeing competition. Is it primarily on pricing, or are you seeing that creep into structure as well?

但同時，似乎每個人都在爭相搶購——交易競爭越來越激烈。很好奇，這些動態之間的一些拉鋸戰，以及你看到的競爭情況。主要問題出在價格上，還是說這個問題也蔓延到了產品結構？

It's primarily on pricing. And fortunately, for us, we're accustomed to a very competitive environment with our footprint, a lot of it being in high-growth areas. But I will tell you, one of the mitigants to that, even though the pricing will continue to be a pressure point, I think the disruption will help us in terms of garnering additional volume.

主要問題在於價格。幸運的是，我們已經習慣了競爭激烈的環境，我們的業務範圍很大一部分都位於高成長地區。但我可以告訴你，緩解這種情況的一個因素是，儘管價格仍將是一個壓力點，但我認為這種混亂將有助於我們獲得額外的銷售。

So we are well positioned for that and ready to capitalize on any disruption that might come. So right now, at this stage, I don't see a whole lot of compromise on structure, which is good for the industry. But I do see a lot of pressure on pricing.

因此，我們已經做好了充分準備，能夠抓住任何可能出現的變革機會。所以目前，在這個階段，我認為在結構上不會有太大的妥協，這對產業來說是件好事。但我確實看到價格方面面臨很大的壓力。

Yeah. And then just touching on the equipment finance side of the business. Could you touch on how production has been, how demand is trending there, what segments of equipment finance you're seeing the most demand for?

是的。然後簡單談談業務中的設備融資方面。能否談談生產狀況、需求趨勢，以及您認為設備融資的哪些領域需求最大？

And then again, just any underlying credit trends within that business and some of the fee income opportunities that could come out of there as well. I know it's a lot, but just elaborate a bit on the equipment finance side.

此外，也要關注該業務內部的任何潛在信貸趨勢，以及由此可能產生的一些費用收入機會。我知道內容很多，但請您詳細說明設備融資方面的問題。

Yeah, I'll touch on the overall sentiment, and then Doug can talk about the credit. But the -- I would tell you, I think it's a good reflection of -- these are small business operators. And so what we're encouraged to see is the demand there. It's obviously picking up.

是的，我會談談整體感受，然後道格可以談談授信方面的問題。但是——我想說，我認為這很好地反映了——這些都是小企業經營者。因此，我們欣喜地看到那裡的需求。顯然正在好轉。

Our credit box is -- we're very pleased with, and you can see that in the declining charge-offs and NPAs. So that seems to be a bright spot for us as we go forward and the economy seems to be holding up. So I think it's a bigger, broader reflection of how well the small business operators are performing at this stage. And, Doug, do you want to talk about the credit side of it and the metrics there?

我們的信用狀況—我們非常滿意，從不斷下降的壞帳和不良貸款率可以看出這一點。所以，這似乎是我們未來發展的亮點，而且經濟狀況似乎也保持穩定。所以我認為這更廣泛地反映了小企業經營者目前的表現。道格，你想談談信用方面以及相關的衡量指標嗎？

Yeah, sure. Thank you. David, the credit box, we retooled that at the end of '23 and into '24. And I think we have it about right now where we want it, and we've seen very good results. And we've seen charge-offs over the recent quarters kind of right in that target zone that we were looking at.

當然可以。謝謝。David，關於信用額度，我們在 2023 年底到 2024 年初對其進行了改造。我認為我們現在基本上已經達到了我們想要的狀態，而且我們已經看到了非常好的結果。我們看到，最近幾季的沖銷額基本上都落在了我們所關注的目標範圍內。

Okay. And then just the last part of that question was the fee income opportunities coming out of that business. You saw nice growth this quarter. Just curious some of the fee income opportunities you're seeing there.

好的。最後，問題的最後一部分是關於這項業務帶來的費用收入機會。本季你們取得了不錯的成長。我只是好奇你在那邊看到了哪些收費收入機會。

Yeah. I think the fee income -- we had a very strong fee income in that sector, in that vertical this quarter. And I think that will moderate. You can expect anywhere probably around 75% of that fee income to continue on a go-forward recurring basis.

是的。我認為手續費收入——本季我們在該領域、該垂直行業獲得了非常強勁的手續費收入。我認為這種情況會有所緩和。預計未來約有 75% 的費用收入將持續產生。

The other thing that we are excited about with increasing volume is we are -- we've got the ability now and are finalizing the opportunity to start securitizing that paper. In that way, we can increase production and still maintain some servicing and fee income there.

隨著交易量的增加，我們感到興奮的另一點是——我們現在有能力並且正在敲定開始將該票據證券化的機會。這樣，我們既可以提高產量，又能維持一定的服務和費用收入。

So that could be a real contributor as we go forward in terms of prepayment penalties, late fees, and everything else associated with servicing. So that is an add to us in terms of that particular line of business.

因此，隨著我們推進預付款罰款、滯納金以及與服務相關的其他一切事宜，這可能會成為一個真正的影響因素。所以就該項業務而言，這對我們來說是一個利好消息。

Yeah, that's terrific. Thanks, everybody.

是啊，太棒了。謝謝大家。

You bet.

當然。

(Operator Instructions) Catherine Mealor, KBW.

（操作說明）Catherine Mealor，KBW。

Thanks. Good morning.

謝謝。早安.

Good morning.

早安.

I wanted to start first on expenses. It was nice to see the decline this quarter. But I assume, per your comment, that the efficiency ratio will move up next quarter. That will probably increase next quarter. And so maybe kind of the big-picture question on expenses is, can you talk about a good growth rate to think about for expenses going into next year just with loan growth being better?

我想先從費用方面入手。很高興看到本季出現下滑。但根據你的評論，我推測下個季度的效率比率將會上升。下個季度可能會增加。因此，關於支出方面，或許可以從一個宏觀角度來看待這個問題：如果貸款成長情況更好，那麼明年支出方面一個合理的成長率是多少？

And then the second part of that is, how should we think about how the mortgage expense line looks as mortgage revenue also increases next year? I noticed the mortgage comp line relative to mortgage revenue this quarter declined. And so I was just curious if there was anything going on that's run ratable or if that's just a one-time event. Thanks.

其次，隨著明年抵押貸款收入的成長，我們該如何看待抵押貸款支出項的變化？我注意到本季抵押貸款收入佔抵押貸款收入的比例有所下降。所以我很好奇，有沒有什麼值得關注的賽事，還是只是一次性的事件。謝謝。

Yeah. Perfect. Thank you, Catherine. So I'll start with general expenses, and I'll say that the efficiency ratio be down in the 49% is really driven from the revenue side, the fact that we had the margin expansion and we had some noninterest income growth there.

是的。完美的。謝謝你，凱瑟琳。所以我先從一般費用說起，效率比率下降到 49% 主要是由於收入方面的原因，因為我們的利潤率有所提高，而且非利息收入也有所增長。

So I don't necessarily think that expenses were unreasonably low. I think when we look at next quarter, consensus has us about the same as 3Q. And I think that looks very reasonable. And then when you look into 2026, again, kind of -- I hear your question on mortgage, and I'll take that in just a second.

所以我並不認為開支低得不合理。我認為展望下個季度，普遍預期與第三季度大致相同。我認為這非常合理。然後，當你展望 2026 年時，同樣地——我聽到了你關於抵押貸款的問題，我馬上就回答。

So kind of with regular expenses, I think consensus has us right now at about a 5.5% increase. And I think that looks a little -- I mean, I think that looks reasonable. You kind of think about salaries and benefits kind of increasing in that 4% to 5% range, other expenses coming in about 3%, and then maybe some increased mortgage revenue or increased mortgage expenses with that increased revenue. So kind of blending all that into that 5%, 5.5% rate for noninterest expense growth next year looks very reasonable to me.

所以，考慮到日常開支，我認為目前的普遍共識是成長約 5.5%。我覺得這看起來有點——我的意思是，我覺得這看起來很合理。你可能會認為薪資和福利增加了 4% 到 5%，其他支出增加了 3% 左右，然後隨著收入的增加，抵押貸款收入或抵押貸款支出可能會增加。所以，將所有這些因素綜合起來，明年非利息支出成長率設定為 5% 或 5.5%，在我看來非常合理。

On the mortgage expense side, I would say that if we see that tenure come down and we get some real strong tailwind into the mortgage production and we see mortgage pick up, we would have some additional mortgage expenses. I think the easiest way to probably model that out is through an efficiency ratio specialized in mortgage.

在抵押貸款支出方面，我認為，如果我們看到貸款期限縮短，抵押貸款業務出現強勁增長，抵押貸款活動回暖，那麼我們將面臨一些額外的抵押貸款支出。我認為最簡單的模擬方法可能是透過專門針對抵押貸款的效率比率。

They're currently running about a 60% efficiency ratio, 60% to 62% efficiency ratio. And as they get the volume back up, their fixed cost stay. And the variable cost, which is really the compensation, will probably drive them into closer to a 55% efficiency ratio. So as modeling out that growth, I would model out about a 55% efficiency ratio on the growth, if that helps.

他們目前的運作效率約為 60%，效率在 60% 到 62% 之間。隨著銷售恢復，他們的固定成本依然存在。而變動成本（實際上是補償）可能會使他們的效率比率接近 55%。因此，在模擬這種成長時，我會模擬大約 55% 的成長效率比率，如果這有幫助的話。

Yeah, that's awesome. Okay. Thank you, Nicole. And then maybe my second question, just on the margin. As you just beat us on the margin every quarter this quarter or every quarter this year -- it's been really special. But I know you think that it's coming down next year, which I appreciate.

是啊，太棒了。好的。謝謝你，妮可。然後，我的第二個問題可能就順帶提一下。你們每個季度，或者說今年每個季度，都以微弱優勢擊敗我們——這真的很特別。但我知道你認為它明年就會拆除，我很感激。

And so within that, maybe if you could talk a little bit about just on the deposit side, where you think deposits will go. And I don't know if it's easier to talk about it on like a beta for the next 100 basis points, maybe how that looks relative to the past 100 basis points. But help us just think about where deposit costs can go as we see rate cuts.

所以，在這個框架內，您能否稍微談談存款方面，您認為存款會流向哪裡？我不知道用測試版的方式來討論接下來的 100 個基點是否更容易些，也許可以討論一下它相對於過去 100 個基點的變化情況。但請大家思考一下，隨著利率下調，存款成本可能會如何改變。

Absolutely. So my margin guidance has said compression for several quarters now. We haven't seen it. But I will say that we're starting to see it. And so when you look at -- and I say that based on a couple of things. One, we know that our deposits have repriced a little bit faster than our loans and that they were starting to catch up and then the Fed moved again.

絕對地。因此，我的利潤率預期已經連續幾季都顯示利潤率將下降。我們還沒見過。但我可以說，我們已經開始看到這種情況了。所以當你審視——我這麼說是基於以下幾點。第一，我們知道存款的重新定價速度比貸款快一些，而且存款開始趕上貸款，然後聯準會又採取了行動。

So we know we have some built-in compression in the future in the margin just from that lag of the loans catching up to deposits. And every time the Fed cuts, it kind of just pushes that lag out a little bit. So I do feel like it's eventually coming from that side.

因此，我們知道，由於貸款追趕存款的滯後性，未來邊際效益會有一定的壓縮。聯準會每次降息，都會稍微延後這種滯後效應。所以我感覺最終問題會出在那邊。

And then the second piece of my margin guide really comes from the competition that, I think, we will see and we are starting to see on the deposit side. As everybody is really starting to fight for the growth on the asset side, they have to fund it. And so we're starting to see that on the deposit side.

然後，我的利潤率指導原則的第二部分實際上來自存款方面的競爭，我認為我們將會看到，而我們已經開始看到這種競爭。當所有人都開始真正爭奪資產方面的成長時，他們就必須為此提供資金。因此，我們在存款方面也開始看到這種情況。

So an example, when you look at our retail CDs in the fourth quarter, this is the first time that we've seen this where we have almost $1 billion of CDs maturing. And they're coming off at a 3.71% rate. But our third-quarter production for CDs is at 3.89%.

舉個例子，看看我們第四季的零售 CD，這是我們第一次看到近 10 億美元的 CD 到期。它們的下降率為 3.71%。但我們第三季 CD 產量為 3.89%。

So where we've had kind of some tailwind coming into that CD rate up to this point, this is the first time that they're very close to not having that tailwind and maybe actually having a little bit of headwind, thanks to the competition. I will say that our overall growth is still accretive to margin, and it really has to do with that growth in noninterest-bearing.

所以，先前CD利率一直受到一些利多因素的影響，但現在由於競爭，CD利率首次接近失去這種利多因素，甚至可能面臨一些逆風。我想說的是，我們的整體成長仍然有利於利潤率，這確實與非計息收入的成長有關。

If you look at our loan production coming on at a [6.77%] and our blended deposit rate of our interest-bearing deposits, that spread is about a [3.52%]. But if you add in that noninterest-bearing growth, we flip from being dilutive to being accretive to margin.

如果您看我們目前的貸款發放利率（6.77%）和我們計息存款的綜合存款利率，那麼利差約為[3.52%]。但如果把這部分不計息的成長也算進去，那麼利潤率就會從稀釋型轉變為增值型。

So the real answer there is, can we continue to grow noninterest-bearing deposits? If we don't and we are only able to grow interest-bearing, then we will absolutely have some compression on the margin. But I will tell you that we stay very much focused on growth of NII. So even if we have a little margin compression, I would expect NII to continue to grow.

所以真正的答案是，我們能否繼續增加不計息存款？如果我們不這麼做，而只能增加計息資產，那麼我們的利潤率肯定會受到一定程度的壓縮。但我可以告訴你們，我們始終非常專注於NII的成長。因此，即使利潤率略有下降，我預計淨利息收入仍將繼續成長。

Okay. Great. Thank you. Appreciate that.

好的。偉大的。謝謝。謝謝。

(Operator Instructions) Russell Gunther, Stephens.

（操作說明）Russell Gunther，Stephens。

Hey, good morning, guys.

嘿，大家早安。

Good morning.

早安.

I wanted to follow up on loan growth commentary here on the mid-single digits. Just curious in terms of a potential upside scenario, given the strength of your markets and considerable dislocation occurring within them. Is there a scenario where we could start to see that begin to accelerate next year from kind of the mid- to the high single-digit rate?

我想就貸款成長方面關於個位數中段成長率的評論做個後續說明。我只是好奇，鑑於你們市場的強勁勢頭以及市場內部正在發生的相當大的動盪，是否存在潛在的上漲空間。是否存在這樣一種情況：明年我們可能會看到成長率從個位數中高水準開始加速？

That's certainly what we hope and would like to anticipate. And I think the most important thing is being in a position to capitalize on that, which is where we are. So that's what gives us a lot of confidence in our ability to take it from mid-single digits to upper single digits or maybe even double digits. We're accustomed to growing at a 10% rate in a healthy environment.

這當然是我們所希望和期待的。我認為最重要的是要處於能夠利用這種優勢的位置，而我們現在就處於這樣的位置。所以，這讓我們非常有信心將數字從個位數提高到個位數以上，甚至兩位數。在健康的環境下，我們習慣以 10% 的速度成長。

And given -- it depends on the macro economy, too, and what happens there. But if things start lining up and improving like we're seeing, whether it be in terms of foreign trade, tariffs, employment, GDP, I think you could see an elevated loan growth opportunity.

而且，這也取決於宏觀經濟及其發展。但如果情況像我們現在看到的那樣開始好轉，無論是對外貿易、關稅、就業還是GDP，我認為貸款成長的機會將會增加。

And then you compound that with disruption, that will be a huge opportunity for us to capitalize in our primary markets. So we remain -- as I said last time, we're in the optimistic camp and not just cautiously optimistic. But we're very optimistic about what we see in front of us.

再加上市場顛覆，這將是我們主要市場中一個巨大的機遇，我們可以充分利用這個機會。所以，正如我上次所說，我們仍然屬於樂觀陣營，而不僅僅是謹慎樂觀。但我們對眼前的情況非常樂觀。

Thank you, Palmer. And then kind of in that scenario or perhaps maybe more near term, how should we think about the size of the investment portfolio going forward?

謝謝你，帕爾默。那麼，在這種情況下，或更近期的考慮，我們該如何看待未來投資組合的規模？

So our investment portfolio, as you know, we let it get down to about 3%. We're back up now to right at 9.3%. So we could maybe go up. Our goal is probably that 9% to 10%. So we're very close to being there. We could add about another $175 million or so to get us to that to the 10% range.

如你所知，我們的投資組合收益率一度跌至3%左右。現在又回到了 9.3%。所以我們或許可以上去。我們的目標可能是9%到10%。所以我們離目標已經非常接近了。我們還可以再增加約 1.75 億美元，使其達到 10% 的比例。

But I think that's really where we feel comfortable. Although I will say we like the fact that we have the optionality that if we -- which keeps us focused on the deposit growth. Because we -- if we can grow the deposits, then we have some optionality between both loans and securities.

但我認為，在那裡我們才真正感到自在。不過，我們喜歡這種選擇權，如果我們——這讓我們能夠專注於存款成長。因為如果我們能夠增加存款，那麼我們在貸款和證券之間就有一定的選擇權。

Got it. Okay. Thank you, Nicole. And then I guess, just last one for me, maybe going back to the optimism around organic growth. Given that opportunity set, is there anything from an M&A perspective for depositories on the buy-side front that makes sense for you guys? Or is the organic, again, opportunity set sort of more of a priority at this point?

知道了。好的。謝謝你，妮可。最後，我想，對我來說，最後一個問題可能是回到對有機成長的樂觀態度。鑑於目前的機會情勢，從併購角度來看，對你們而言，對於存管機構的收購者來說，有哪些值得考慮的收購目標？或者說，目前有機成長的機會是否更為重要？

I would tell you, it's even more of a priority now the organic piece of it, just given the new opportunities with disruption. I think it would be a mistake for us to get distracted at a time where we've probably got far more opportunities organically going forward as we look out than getting distracted by an M&A deal.

我想說，鑑於顛覆性創新帶來的新機遇，有機部分現在更加重要了。我認為，如果我們在這個時候分心，那將是一個錯誤。展望未來，我們可能會有更多自然的發展機會，而不是被併購交易分散注意力。

Very good. Thanks, guys, for taking my question.

非常好。謝謝各位回答我的問題。

(Operator Instructions) Stephen Scouten, Piper Sandler.

（操作員說明）Stephen Scouten、Piper Sandler。

Thanks. Good morning. So I like this optimism around loan growth. I'm wondering what part of that optimism would come from potential additional hirings.

謝謝。早安.所以我很看好這種對貸款成長的樂觀情緒。我想知道這種樂觀情緒有多少來自於潛在的額外招募。

I know I think it was year to date last quarter, you'd hired 64 new lenders. But maybe -- and I know you tend to talk about that number in net and gross terms. So just kind of wondering what the scale of that opportunity might be and if that's a big focus and a push behind that organic growth optimism.

我知道，我記得上個季度到現在，你們已經聘用了 64 位新的貸款人。但也許——我知道你傾向於用淨額和總額來談論這個數字。所以，我只是想知道這個機會的規模有多大，以及這是否是推動有機成長樂觀情緒的重要因素和動力。

Yeah. Our focus has and will remain -- we're focused on garnering customers more than we are having to have the dependency on doing lift-outs of teams to capitalize on that. And part of that is just because we're well established in these markets where you've got the disruption.

是的。我們的重點一直是，將來也會一直是──我們更注重獲取客戶，而不是依賴從外部團隊抽調人員來獲取客戶。部分原因是，我們在這些充滿變革的市場中已經站穩了腳步。

That doesn't mean we won't be opportunistic and look at talent as it comes available. But the nice thing is, once again, for us to execute on our plan for growth, we have all the talent on board. And we're constantly assessing and reassessing that talent.

但這並不代表我們不會抓住機會，在人才出現時積極尋找合適的人選。但令人欣慰的是，為了執行我們的成長計劃，我們已經擁有了所有必要的人才。我們一直在不斷地評估和重新評估這些人才。

So if you look at what we've done just this year, net, I think we're up three people in the commercial group. But that includes 10 new commercial hires. So I think it's important to constantly look at the caliber of the individuals you hire, not just the quantity. But look at the quality. And so that's really -- I think if you do that as you go along, you avoid potential pitfalls as you go forward.

所以，如果你看看我們今年所做的工作，淨而言，我認為我們在商業團隊中增加了三個人。但這其中包括10名新聘的商業人員。所以我認為，在招募過程中，不僅要關注員工數量，更要關注員工的素質。但看看這品質。所以我覺得，如果你在前進的過程中這樣做，你就能避免未來可能遇到的陷阱。

So we are certainly in a position to capitalize on what we see out there with our existing teammates. But if we see selective opportunities to bring in new talent, we will certainly consider that. But we are not dependent on that to capitalize on the opportunities we see going forward.

因此，我們完全有能力利用我們現有的團隊成員，充分利用我們所看到的資源。但如果我們發現有合適的機會引進新人才，我們一定會考慮的。但我們並不依賴於此來把握未來我們看到的機會。

Got it. Appreciate that. And then you guys are kind of, in a lot of ways, in my mind, like tip of the spear around mortgage activity and inflection points. I'm wondering what you're seeing given where the 10-year has been moving and if there's any point where you think we could see a greater inflection around mortgage demand, both on the purchase side and the potential for a pickup in refinance activity?

知道了。謝謝。在我看來，你們在很多方面都像是房貸活動和轉捩點的先鋒。鑑於 10 年期公債的走勢，我想知道您對此有何看法？您認為在購屋方面以及再融資活動可能出現回升的時機是否會出現？

We certainly hope so. And I think things are moving in that direction. Our applications are up tremendously. And I think people are realizing that it may move that direction. But I think if we can get down, if we talked about last time, something with a five handle on it in terms of the 30-year, I think you're going to see an accelerated activity in the industry in the mortgage space.

我們當然希望如此。我認為事情正朝著這個方向發展。我們的申請人數大幅增加。我認為人們正在意識到，事情可能會朝著那個方向發展。但我認為，如果我們能把利率降下來，就像上次我們討論的那樣，30 年期貸款利率降到 5 個百分點，我認為你會看到抵押貸款行業的活動加速發展。

And once again, we're well positioned to capitalize on that. We've got a lot of heavy purchase volume right now. But I think that if we start seeing some improvement in the 10-year, that will definitely be a tailwind for us as we look into the end of this year and into 2026.

我們再次做好了充分準備，可以利用這一點。我們目前有大量的大宗採購訂單。但我認為，如果我們在未來 10 年內開始看到一些改善，那麼展望今年年底和 2026 年，這肯定會對我們有利。

Okay. Great. The rest of my questions are really already being covered. Congrats on a great quarter.

好的。偉大的。我的其他問題其實都已經得到了解答。恭喜你本季表現出色。

Thank you.

謝謝。

This concludes our question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Palmer Proctor, CEO, for any closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。我謹將會議交還給執行長帕爾默·普羅克特，請他作總結發言。

Great. Thank you. I want to thank our teammates again for another outstanding quarter. We remain focused on producing top-of-class metrics, maintaining our strong core deposit base, and growing our tangible book value per share.

偉大的。謝謝。我要再次感謝我的隊友們，感謝他們又一個賽季的出色表現。我們將繼續專注於創造一流的績效指標，維持強大的核心存款基礎，並提高每股有形帳面價值。

The bank remains well positioned to take advantage of future growth opportunities and disruption in our attractive Southeastern footprint. We appreciate your interest in Ameris Bank. Have a great day.

本行仍處於有利地位，能夠充分利用我們在極具吸引力的東南部地區的未來成長機會和變革機會。感謝您對Ameris銀行的關注。祝你有美好的一天。

The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

會議已經結束。感謝各位參加今天的報告會。您現在可以斷開連線了。