ConnectOne Bancorp Inc (CNOB) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and thank you for standing by. My name is Regina, and I will be your conference operator today At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to the ConnectOne Bancorp Inc fourth-quarter 2023 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) I'd now like to turn the conference over to Siya Vansia, Chief Brand and Innovation Officer. Please go ahead.

您好，感謝您的支持。我叫 Regina，今天我將擔任你們的會議操作員。此時，我歡迎大家參加 ConnectOne Bancorp Inc 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。（操作員說明）我現在想將會議轉交給首席品牌和創新長 Siya Vansia。請繼續。

Good morning and welcome to today's conference call to review ConnectOne's results for the fourth quarter of 2023 and to update you on recent development. On today's conference call will be Frank Sorrentino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; and Bill Burns, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

早安，歡迎參加今天的電話會議，回顧 ConnectOne 2023 年第四季的業績並向您介紹最新發展。董事長兼執行長 Frank Sorrentino 將出席今天的電話會議；以及高級執行副總裁兼財務長 Bill Burns。

I'd also like to caution you that we may make forward-looking statements during today's conference call that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from expectations are detailed in our SEC filings. The forward-looking statements included in this conference call are only made as of the date of this call and the company is not obligated to publicly update or revise them. In addition, certain terms used in this call are non-GAAP financial measures, reconciliations of which are provided in the company's earnings release and accompanying tables or schedules, which have been filed today on Form 8-K, the SEC, and may also be accessed through the company's web.

我還想提醒您，我們可能在今天的電話會議上發表前瞻性聲明，這些聲明有風險和不確定性。我們向 SEC 提交的文件中詳細介紹了可能導致實際結果與預期有重大差異的因素。本次電話會議中所包含的前瞻性陳述僅在本次電話會議之日作出，本公司沒有義務公開更新或修改這些陳述。此外，本次電話會議中使用的某些術語是非GAAP 財務指標，其調節表在公司的收益發布和隨附的表格或時間表中提供，這些數據已於今天在SEC 的8-K 表格中提交，也可能是透過公司網站訪問。

I will now turn the call over to Frank Sorrentino. Frank, please go ahead.

我現在將把電話轉給弗蘭克·索倫蒂諾。弗蘭克，請繼續。

Thank you, Siya, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us today. ConnectOne persevered through an environment marked by significant challenges and risks as 2023 was a complicated period for the banking industry. The Fed's unprecedented tightening had an adverse effect on industry earnings, including ConnectOne's, causing a contraction in net interest margins. But our key profitability measures, efficiency, and asset quality ratios were solid.

謝謝你，Siya，大家早安。感謝您今天加入我們。2023年對銀行業來說是一個複雜的時期，ConnectOne在充滿挑戰和風險的環境中堅持了下來。聯準會前所未有的緊縮政策對包括 ConnectOne 在內的產業獲利產生了不利影響，導致淨利差收縮。但我們主要的獲利能力指標、效率和資產品質比率都很穩健。

We remained a focused, disciplined, and strong financial institution. I am proud to say with the continued strength of our balance sheet, our culture, and the commitment of our entire organization, we were able to stay the course and continue the path that has made ConnectOne a success since our inception nearly 20 years ago.

我們仍然是一家專注、紀律嚴明、實力雄厚的金融機構。我很自豪地說，憑藉我們持續強勁的資產負債表、我們的文化以及整個組織的承諾，我們能夠堅持到底，並繼續沿著 ConnectOne 自近 20 年前成立以來取得成功的道路前進。

As I've discussed many times over the years, providing unparalleled support for our clients has always been a strategic priority for ConnectOne. This isn't anything new, but it's this philosophy, consistent track record, and approach that I believe positions us to outperform in 2024 and beyond. Now let me turn to some of the recent highlights and the near-term outlook.

正如我多年來多次討論的那樣，為客戶提供無與倫比的支援始終是 ConnectOne 的策略重點。這不是什麼新鮮事，但我相信正是這種理念、一致的業績記錄和方法使我們能夠在 2024 年及以後表現出色。現在讓我談談最近的一些亮點和近期前景。

Throughout the course of the past year, we strengthened our capital and liquidity levels and entered 2024 with a fortified balance sheet that positions us to support both existing and new clients. Reflecting ConnectOne's long-standing focus on relationship-based lending, during the fourth quarter we had strong sequential C&I loan growth of nearly 7% and saw a positive traction in non-interest-bearing demand deposit trends.

在過去的一年裡，我們加強了資本和流動性水平，並以強化的資產負債表進入 2024 年，這使我們能夠為現有客戶和新客戶提供支援。第四季度，我們的 C&I 貸款連續強勁增長近 7%，且無息活期存款趨勢受到積極推動，這反映了 ConnectOne 對基於關係的貸款的長期關注。

Looking ahead, while our loan pipeline remains robust, we will continue to be disciplined while maintaining our sound approach to both credit as well as spreads. Overall, we can currently anticipate continued gradual opportunistic growth in 2024, Bill will discuss this momentarily. Our fourth quarter net interest margin compressed sequentially, and trends seem to be stabilizing. We're seeing a flattening of deposit costs and anticipate that the margin will widen as the Fed eases its interest rate stance.

展望未來，儘管我們的貸款管道依然強勁，但我們將繼續遵守紀律，同時保持對信貸和利差的穩健態度。總體而言，我們目前可以預期 2024 年將持續逐步機會主義成長，比爾將立即討論這一點。我們第四季的淨利差環比壓縮，趨勢似乎趨於穩定。我們看到存款成本趨於平緩，預計隨著聯準會放鬆利率立場，利差將會擴大。

For the year, we were also able to increase our tangible book value per share by more than 6%, a metric that we've consistently increased since ConnectOne's inception almost 20 years ago. Additionally, while ConnectOne's efficiency ratio has been impacted by the compressing margins, our annualized operating expenses remain below 1.5% of average assets, placing us among the top tier of efficiency among banks.

今年，我們的每股有形帳面價值也增加了 6% 以上，自 ConnectOne 近 20 年前成立以來，我們一直在不斷提高這項指標。此外，雖然ConnectOne的效率受到利潤率壓縮的影響，但我們的年化營運費用仍低於平均資產的1.5%，使我們的效率在銀行中名列前茅。

Turning to credit. ConnectOne's metrics remained solid, reflecting our high credit standards, our relationship-based client philosophy, and our track record of avoiding riskier subsegments. Additionally, we have been and will continue to be proactive in prudently maintaining reserve levels commensurate with our growth. So obviously, we'll provide some more on credit metrics in a few minutes.

轉向信用。ConnectOne 的指標保持穩健，反映了我們的高信用標準、基於關係的客戶理念以及我們避免風險較高細分市場的記錄。此外，我們一直並將繼續積極主動地審慎維持與我們的成長相適應的準備金水準。顯然，我們將在幾分鐘內提供更多有關信用指標的資訊。

Supporting ConnectOne's focus on driving superior growth and profitability over the long term, we've also continued key technology initiatives. This includes efforts to enhance the client experience while expanding opportunities to support our deposit franchise. Further to drive future organic growth, we continue to hire quality talent away from other banks, adding to an already experienced team of bankers here at ConnectOne.

為了支持 ConnectOne 專注於推動長期卓越成長和獲利能力，我們也持續實施關鍵技術措施。這包括努力增強客戶體驗，同時擴大支持我們存款特許經營權的機會。為了進一步推動未來的有機成長，我們繼續從其他銀行聘請優質人才，充實 ConnectOne 已經經驗豐富的銀行家團隊。

Finally, we remain committed to enhancing shareholder value. Last year, we increased our common stock dividend nearly 10% to $0.17 a share, and we'll consider another dividend increase in the next quarter. Our stock outperformed much of the industry during 2023, but we still believe it's undervalued and we'll continue share repurchases in 2024.

最後，我們仍然致力於提高股東價值。去年，我們將普通股股息增加了近 10%，達到每股 0.17 美元，我們將考慮在下個季度再次增加股息。2023 年，我們的股票表現優於大部分產業，但我們仍然認為其價值被低估，我們將在 2024 年繼續股票回購。

In closing, we firmly believe that connect one's financial strength, conservative client-centric model, talent base, and a track record of prudent underwriting and profitability, position us to capitalize on emerging opportunities to enhance ConnectOne's valuable franchise. As we plan ahead, we remain committed to our client first operating model to drive deposits even in a competitive market.

最後，我們堅信，Connect One 的財務實力、保守的以客戶為中心的模式、人才基礎以及審慎承保和盈利能力的記錄，使我們能夠利用新興機會來增強 ConnectOne 的寶貴特許經營權。在我們未來的計劃中，我們仍然致力於客戶至上的營運模式，即使在競爭激烈的市場中也能增加存款。

We'll look to maintain continued emphasis on growth of our C&I division as our new team members continue to build momentum. And we're also excited about the opportunities to strengthen our position in both Long Island and South Florida. We're projecting modest growth and remain well positioned to capitalize on opportunities across our markets.

隨著我們的新團隊成員繼續積蓄動力，我們將繼續重視 C&I 部門的發展。我們也很高興有機會加強我們在長島和南佛羅裡達的地位。我們預計將實現適度成長，並保持良好的地位，以充分利用整個市場的機會。

And so at this time, I'd ask Bill to review our fourth quarter and year-end financial highlights. Bill?

因此，此時，我請比爾回顧我們第四季和年底的財務亮點。帳單？

All right. Thanks, Frank. Good morning, everyone. So as I've done in prior calls, I'm going to give more color on the fourth quarter and also provide some estimated forward guidance.

好的。謝謝，弗蘭克。大家，早安。因此，正如我在之前的電話會議中所做的那樣，我將提供有關第四季度的更多信息，並提供一些估計的前瞻性指導。

Let me start off with deposits. Our client deposits grew sequentially as we continued to execute on the initiatives and incentives for our team to accelerate deposit traction. And to that end, client deposits, which exclude brokered increased $100 million sequentially, which is about 5% annualized. And within that number, non-interest-bearing demand increased by $35 million and that's an 11.5% increase on an annualized basis.

讓我從存款開始。隨著我們繼續執行團隊的舉措和激勵措施以加速存款成長，我們的客戶存款持續成長。為此，客戶存款（不包括經紀業務）連續增加了 1 億美元，年化成長率約為 5%。其中，無息需求增加了 3,500 萬美元，年化成長率為 11.5%。

I want to give you a little a little more color here. Monthly average non-interest-bearing demand increased each month from October through January. So with that, I feel confident that at a minimum, we've hit a floor here with potentially some growth going into 2024.

我想在這裡給你多一點色彩。十月到一月，月平均無息需求逐月增加。因此，我有信心至少我們已經觸底，並可能在 2024 年出現一些增長。

The net interest margin contracted sequentially by five basis points. I think that's in line with the previous guidance I gave you, and it reflects a 22 basis points increase in our total cost of deposits, which is now up to 3.14 notwithstanding that increase in deposit costs, which is based on averages pertaining to the fourth quarter versus the third quarter.

淨利差較上季收縮五個基點。我認為這與我之前給您的指導一致，它反映了我們的總存款成本增加了 22 個基點，儘管存款成本有所增加，但現在已達到 3.14 個基點，這是基於第四季度的平均值季與第三季。

We saw a measurable slowdown in interest-bearing deposit rates, which were flat in December versus November, and that was due to CD repricing, which has essentially run its course. And then also with no recent Fed increases, savings and money market rates have stabilized. And with that, it appears that our margin will trough in the first quarter. I would say slightly below the fourth quarter level.

我們看到計息存款利率明顯放緩，12 月與 11 月持平，這是由於定期存單重新定價，而這一過程基本上已經結束。而且，由於聯準會近期沒有升息，儲蓄和貨幣市場利率也趨於穩定。因此，我們的利潤率似乎將在第一季觸底。我想說略低於第四季的水平。

And then going forward from there, I think we'll stick with our previous guidance that margin will expand with roughly five basis points of widening for each 25 basis point rate cut. As you know, there are many moving parts to modeling net interest margin forecast, but we feel relatively comfortable with the direction, the magnitude, and the timing of our guidance. And the caveat to that guidance are nonrecurring items such as prepayment fees, which can be difficult to predict and increased quantitative tightening, which would increase competitive pressures and therefore slow the speed of deposit rate declines.

然後展望未來，我認為我們將堅持先前的指導，即每降息 25 個基點，利潤率將擴大約 5 個基點。如您所知，對淨利差預測進行建模有許多變化因素，但我們對指導的方向、幅度和時機感到相對滿意。該指引需要注意的是預付款費用等非經常性項目，這些項目可能難以預測，而且量化緊縮程度也會加大，這將增加競爭壓力，從而減緩存款利率下降的速度。

As to the impact of loan portfolio yields, which is another component of limb forecasting. We expect to benefit from a loan pipeline, which is predominantly wider spread C&I in construction, while tighter spread multifamily originations have been limited. I do want to mention that we had very, very strong growth in C&I in the fourth quarter. But a portion was related to line usage, some of which has already been repaid. And although we anticipate a continuation of our emphasis on C&I growth, it will likely be lower than this past quarter.

至於貸款組合收益率的影響，這是肢體預測的另一個組成部分。我們預計將從貸款管道中受益，該貸款管道主要是建築業中更廣泛的商業和商業貸款，而多戶住宅的貸款範圍更窄。我確實想提一下，第四季我們的商業和工業成長非常非常強勁。但一部分與線路使用有關，其中一些已經償還。儘管我們預計將繼續強調工商業成長，但其成長可能會低於上個季度。

Moving on to non-interest income. Just want to mention one item here. And that is SBA loan sales, which have been running about $500,000 per quarter. We expect to continue and improve on that pace throughout 2024.

轉向非利息收入。這裡只想提一件事情。這就是 SBA 貸款銷售，每季約 50 萬美元。我們預計 2024 年將繼續維持並提高這一速度。

In terms of operating expenses, we have essentially been flat the past two quarters. Annualized operating expenses percentage of average assets remains less than 1.5%. And looking into next year, my expectation is for an approximately 5% to 7% increase in expenses with a larger share of that increase coming in the first quarter, that usually works that way for us. You know there continues to be some inflationary pressures and there is still a tight labor market. Keep in mind some of our depending decisions take into account revenue growth. So we can and have adjusted mid-course in past years.

就營運支出而言，過去兩季我們基本上持平。年化營業費用佔平均資產的比例仍低於1.5%。展望明年，我的預期是支出將增加約 5% 至 7%，其中較大一部分成長將出現在第一季度，這對我們來說通常是如此。你知道，通膨壓力仍然存在，勞動市場仍然緊張。請記住，我們的一些相關決策會考慮收入成長。因此，我們可以並且在過去幾年中已經進行了中期調整。

Just a little bit on liquidity. Our liquidity position remains very strong by almost any measure. Readily accessible, liquidity remains well above 2 times the adjusted uninsured deposits. And that uninsured deposit number excludes collateralized municipal deposits as well as inter-company deposits. So that number stands now at 22% of total deposits.

只是流動性方面的一點點。幾乎以任何標準衡量，我們的流動性狀況仍然非常強勁。流動性易於獲取，仍遠高於調整後未保險存款的兩倍。未投保的存款數量不包括市政抵押存款以及公司間存款。所以這個數字目前佔存款總額的 22%。

Turning to capital for a second. Our tangible common equity ratio with all the company is very strong at 9.3%, that's up from 9.0% a year ago. While subsidiary bank leverage ratio reached [11-20] at year end, up from [10-60] a year ago. Tangible book value per share has now surpassed $23. It is consistently increased for many years, dating back more than a decade and also was largely unaffected by AOCI.

暫時轉向資本。我們與整個公司的有形普通股比率非常強勁，達到 9.3%，高於一年前的 9.0%。子銀行槓桿率年末達到[11-20]，高於一年前的[10-60]。每股有形帳面價值現已超過 23 美元。它多年來一直持續增長，可以追溯到十多年前，基本上不受 AOCI 的影響。

Repurchases for the fourth quarter were slightly more than 100,000 shares at an average price of $21. That repurchase level was a bit below the prior quarter, but we have 900,000 shares left in our authorization. And I would expect to utilize that capacity in its entirety during 2024.

第四季回購略多於 100,000 股，平均價格為 21 美元。回購水準略低於上一季度，但我們的授權還剩 900,000 股。我希望在 2024 年期間充分利用這項能力。

On credit quality metrics. It was an action that did not impact earnings or loan loss provisioning. We charge off taxi medallion loans that were previously reserved for in our allowance. That added approximately 20 basis points of the charge-off ratio for the quarter. Our taxi loan portfolio is $10 million, and it's valued at [125,000] per medallion. In addition, we had charge-offs in the quarter totaling approximately $5 million isolated flood credits that did not materially impact earnings either. The annualized charge-off ratio for the quarter, excluding the taxi charge-off was 24 basis points.

關於信用品質指標。這項行動不會影響收益或貸款損失撥備。我們取消了先前在我們的津貼中保留的出租車牌照貸款。該季度的核銷率增加了約 20 個基點。我們的計程車貸款組合為 1000 萬美元，每個牌照的價值為 [125,000]。此外，我們在本季沖銷了總計約 500 萬美元的孤立洪水信貸，這也沒有對收益產生重大影響。本季的年化核銷率為 24 個基點（不含計程車核銷）。

Credit quality remains sound as measured by positive trends we see in criticized and classified assets and delinquencies, and there's no discernible trend in any sector or subsector. Nevertheless, we agree with Wall Street analyst models. And that it's prudent to expect a more normalized charge-off percentage for the industry, which is a little higher than what was experienced in 2023.

根據我們在批評和分類資產以及拖欠方面看到的積極趨勢來衡量，信用品質仍然良好，並且任何部門或子部門都沒有明顯的趨勢。儘管如此，我們還是同意華爾街分析師的模型。謹慎的做法是預計該行業的沖銷比例會更加正常化，該比例略高於 2023 年的水平。

One last note on the effective tax rate, it was a little bit lower this quarter at 24.4%. That was due to a lower level of pretax income. But I'd expect the regular run rate for '24 to be back around 26%. And with that, Frank, back to you.

關於有效稅率的最後一點是，本季實際稅率略有下降，為 24.4%。這是由於稅前收入水準較低。但我預計 24 年的常規運行率將恢復到 26% 左右。法蘭克，回到你身邊。

Thanks, Bill. In summary, in what's been a challenging year for most of the industry, we at ConnectOne yet again demonstrated our ability to perform in extraordinary times.

謝謝，比爾。總而言之，對於大多數產業來說，這是充滿挑戰的一年，我們 ConnectOne 再次證明了我們在非凡時期的表現能力。

While we're optimistic about 2024, we do expect it will have its challenges. However, with our strong capital foundation, our commitment to our core business, and track record of navigating through uncertain times, our team is prepared to be opportunistic about the year ahead.

雖然我們對 2024 年持樂觀態度，但我們確實預期它將面臨挑戰。然而，憑藉我們強大的資本基礎、對核心業務的承諾，以及在不確定時期的應對記錄，我們的團隊已準備好在未來一年抓住機會。

As always, we appreciate your interest in ConnectOne, and thanks again for joining us today. Operator, we'll now open the line for questions.

一如既往，我們感謝您對 ConnectOne 的興趣，並再次感謝您今天加入我們。接線員，我們現在開始提問。

(Operator Instructions) Daniel Tamayo, Raymond James.

（操作員說明）Daniel Tamayo、Raymond James。

Morning, guys. Thanks for taking my question. And Bill, I appreciate all the detail on the NII guide and the margin as well. I guess I'll start on that. I appreciate the five basis points, but just curious like what all is going into that in terms of deposit repricing assumptions. What is going to be immediately repriceable versus -- you're hoping you'll be able to pass through that sort of stuff. Thanks.

早安，夥計們。感謝您提出我的問題。Bill，我也欣賞 NII 指南和保證金上的所有細節。我想我會從那裡開始。我很欣賞這五個基點，但只是好奇存款重新定價假設方面的情況。那些可以立即重新定價的東西，而不是——你希望自己能夠通過這類東西。謝謝。

Yeah, there's a lot to our deposit makeup, but like I said in the call, we think we've maxed out our interest-bearing balances are. And so, I think first off, the deposit costs seem to be leveling off. And so we'll be able to pickup in margin by having our assets continue to reprice higher.

是的，我們的存款組成有很多，但正如我在電話中所說，我們認為我們已經最大化了我們的計息餘額。因此，我認為首先，存款成本似乎正在趨於穩定。因此，透過讓我們的資產繼續重新定價更高，我們將能夠提高利潤。

So that's going to lead to stopping of contraction and the beginning of a widening of the margin. And then as the Fed cuts, and our model show about four, which we have four cuts throughout the year. We've got right now we're modeling about a 50% beta on that. So I don't know if that helps you, helps to answer your question.

因此，這將導致收縮停止並開始擴大邊際。然後隨著聯準會降息，我們的模型顯示大約四次，我們全年有四次降息。我們現在正在對此進行 5​​0% 貝塔建模。所以我不知道這是否對你有幫助，是否有助於回答你的問題。

No, that's helpful. And you're modeling that to take place immediately or with a bit of a lag?

不，這很有幫助。您將其建模為立即發生還是稍有延遲？

Well like I said, there's a lot of moving parts. So I am actually saying it's concurrent whether. So it's 50 base -- it's 50%. There's different ways of looking at beta. You can look at it as, it's immediate 50% or you could look at that as a lag that gets to a 100%. But the way the model works, we have it at 50% immediate.

正如我所說，有很多活動部件。所以我實際上是說它是否是並發的。所以它是 50 基數——即 50%。看待貝塔值有不同的方式。您可以將其視為立即 50%，也可以將其視為達到 100% 的延遲。但按照模型的工作方式，我們可以立即得到 50% 的結果。

Got it. And then maybe one for Frank, just on the loan growth. I know, Bill you also mentioned that you're expecting C&I to slow from the strong growth that you saw in the fourth quarter. But I'm wondering if you could just kind of put a finer point on what type of loan growth you're expecting this coming year?

知道了。然後弗蘭克可能會想到一個關於貸款成長的問題。我知道，比爾，您也提到您預計工商業將因第四季度的強勁增長而放緩。但我想知道您是否可以更具體地說明您預計明年的貸款成長類型是什麼？

Sure. I think we mentioned a number of times that we've been focusing a lot on our construction portfolio. We think it's actually a really great asset class at this point in time, notwithstanding the fact that interest rates are higher. There's a tremendous amount of demand for the product that most of our builders are bringing to market, and we're seeing that with complete projects. And so we've continued to expand not only the size of the portfolio, but also the geographies in which we operate. And so we're pretty excited about that.

當然。我想我們多次提到我們一直非常關注我們的建築產品組合。我們認為，儘管利率較高，但目前它實際上是一個非常好的資產類別。我們的大多數建築商將其推向市場的產品有巨大的需求，我們在完整的專案中也看到了這一點。因此，我們不僅繼續擴大投資組合的規模，而且還擴大我們所經營的地區。所以我們對此感到非常興奮。

And over the last 10 years we've been saying that we've been slowly but surely building out our C&I team. And pretty much every quarter we see more and more C&I loans coming into the portfolio. And that's just an evolution that's occurring that we're pretty happy about, deemphasizing a little bit of the commercial real estate and a little bit more on the commercial side. So I'm pretty confident that those trends will continue.

在過去 10 年裡，我們一直在說，我們一直在緩慢但堅定地建立我們的 C&I 團隊。幾乎每個季度我們都會看到越來越多的工商業貸款進入投資組合。這只是我們非常高興正在發生的一種演變，不再強調一點商業地產，而更多地強調商業方面。所以我非常有信心這些趨勢將會持續下去。

Certainly, in the greater New York market, we're woefully under house. And so I don't see anything that's going to change my opinion about the housing market or the construction market in general, at least not at the moment. And in the C&I world, when you look at the strength of businesses today, their balance sheets are in some of the best shape they've ever been, notwithstanding some of the changes since the end of COVID. But businesses in general in and around the New York market are doing quite well.

當然，在更大的紐約市場，我們的處境非常糟糕。因此，我認為沒有任何事情會改變我對房地產市場或整個建築市場的看法，至少目前不會。在工商業領域，當你觀察當今企業的實力時，他們的資產負債表處於有史以來最好的狀態，儘管自新冠疫情結束以來發生了一些變化。但紐約市場及其周邊地區的企業整體表現相當不錯。

And so we're pretty confident about the types of businesses that we've been in, whether it's in the school space, whether it's in light manufacturing, whether it's in the health care environment, all of those areas all have (technical difficulties) very, very promising futures. And so we keep building the capabilities to service those clients, and they like the ConnectOne model.

所以我們對我們所從事的業務類型非常有信心，無論是在學校領域，無論是在輕工業製造領域，還是在醫療保健環境中，所有這些領域都有（技術困難）未來非常非常有希望。因此，我們不斷建構為這些客戶提供服務的能力，他們喜歡 ConnectOne 模式。

So you expect growth to accelerate as the year goes on as your pipelines kind of fill back up. Is that a good way to think about it?

因此，隨著時間的推移，隨著管道的回填，您預計成長會加速。這是一個好的思考方式嗎？

I wouldn't call it an acceleration necessarily; I think we will have growth. As I said in my comments, I think the year is going to be a challenging one overall for a lot of different reasons. But I do think that we will as we did in this last quarter, eke out growth. And it will be on an opportunistic basis.

我不一定稱之為加速；它是加速。我想我們將會有成長。正如我在評論中所說，由於多種不同的原因，我認為今年總體上將是充滿挑戰的一年。但我確實認為，我們將像上個季度一樣，努力實現成長。這將是基於機會主義的。

I really don't want to project whether it's going to be 3%, 5%, whatever, 10%. I think it's going to be on a one-off opportunistic basis. We're doing things that seem to make sense. We'll be happy with any growth this year. I think there will be growth.

我真的不想預測它是否會是 3%、5%，或 10%。我認為這將是一種一次性機會主義的基礎。我們正在做一些看似有意義的事情。我們會對今年的任何成長感到高興。我認為會有成長。

But again, there are a lot -- notwithstanding all my positive comments, we are involved in three wars. We have an uncertain Fed at this moment, we have a presidential election coming up, there's lots of things that give me pause about where we may or may not be going forward. And the competitive environment, while we found it to be favorable for us at the moment, I'm not so sure it's going to stay that way going forward.

但同樣，還有很多——儘管我有所有積極的評論，但我們捲入了三場戰爭。目前，我們的聯準會不確定，我們即將舉行總統選舉，有很多事情讓我對我們可能會或可能不會前進的方向猶豫不決。而競爭環境，雖然我們發現目前對我們有利，但我不太確定它會繼續保持這種狀態。

All right understood. I appreciate all the color. I'll step back.

好吧明白了。我欣賞所有的顏色。我會退後一步。

Frank Schiraldi, Piper Sandler.

弗蘭克·席拉爾迪，派珀·桑德勒。

Good morning. Just wondered -- just following up on the NIM dynamics. I mean, Bill is it -- so just the five basis points, I guess were given 25 basis point rate cut. That I would assume it sounds like you have kind of a steady beta.

早安.只是想知道——只是在跟進 NIM 的動態。我的意思是，比爾是這樣的——所以我猜僅僅 5 個基點就降息了 25 個基點。我認為聽起來你有一個穩定的測試版。

But is it maybe reasonable to assume that deposit pricing, that 5% -- that five-basis point is sort of average 25 bips? And if there is some lag, it could take maybe a little bit longer run through than them if there's some lag in deposit pricing. Is that the best way to do think?

但假設存款定價 5%（即 5 個基點）相當於平均 25 個基點，這可能合理嗎？如果存在一些滯後，如果存款定價存在一些滯後，那麼可能需要比他們更長的時間。這是最好的思考方式嗎？

That certainly could happen, but that's not exactly what I was trying to communicate to you. Because it could be the beta could be higher with a lag. There's two ways to do it. You could have a higher beta with a lag or 50% immediate. And the way the model runs out on the different scenarios, the best way to run the model in my view is to improve no, if the average rate for a quarter is up x percent to 20% of that number in terms -- sorry, if the Fed funds rate is down on average by a certain number of basis points, I predict our margin will be up 20% of that number.

這當然有可能發生，但這不是我想要向您傳達的訊息。因為貝塔值可能會因滯後而更高。有兩種方法可以做到這一點。您可以有一個更高的貝塔值，但有滯後或 50% 的即時值。模型在不同場景下的運行方式，在我看來，運行模型的最佳方法是改進“否”，如果一個季度的平均利率上升 x% 到該數字的 20%——抱歉，如果聯邦基金利率平均下降一定數量的基點，我預計我們的利潤率將上升20%。

Right, okay so --

對吧，好吧所以--

I wouldn't really put a lag on the 50 basis -- on the 50%.

我不會真的在 50% 的基礎上設定滯後。

Okay. And then just in terms of growth, to the extent you got it. And you talked about some of the higher yielding product that there's some opportunity, even if C&I growth isn't as great as it was in the quarter. Just wondering your thoughts on aside from the Fed and deposit rates stabilizing overall, just where net new business is coming on the books in terms of loan yields versus the funding costs as new business comes on.

好的。然後就成長而言，就你得到的程度而言。您談到了一些收益率較高的產品，即使 C&I 成長不如本季那麼大，但仍有一些機會。只是想知道除了聯準會和存款利率整體穩定之外，您對淨新業務的看法，即貸款收益率與新業務出現時的融資成本之間的關係。

On business. Yeah, well the spreads are on our business. And the good thing about C&I is it's generally comes along with the deposits. And that's why we're focused on C&I. But I think the spreads are 300 to 400 basis points on C&I lending. And It's similar for construction.

出差。是的，點差是我們的事。C&I 的好處是它通常與存款一起出現。這就是我們專注於 C&I 的原因。但我認為工商業貸款的利差為 300 至 400 個基點。建築也類似。

Perhaps a little higher for construction.

也許對於建築來說要高一點。

Could be a little higher on construction.

施工可能會高一點。

Okay. And then just thinking through, just I think you said maybe there's a 5% to 7% expense growth year over year?

好的。然後想一想，我想你說也許費用年增 5% 到 7%？

Yeah, that's what I have modelled in. There's still inflationary pressures, labor market is still a little bit tight, and so a lot of that is compensation expense. We usually see a bigger uptick in the first quarter. But when I look at my current projections versus the total for '23, I come to the 5% to 7% range.

是的，這就是我建模的內容。通膨壓力仍然存在，勞動市場仍然有點緊張，所以其中很大一部分是補償費用。我們通常會在第一季看到更大的上升。但當我將目前的預測與 23 年的總數進行比較時，我得出了 5% 到 7% 的範圍。

Okay. Is there anything baked in there or maybe you could just remind us in going through the threshold of $10 billion in assets. You know timing there and any incremental costs that might be baked into that 5% to 7% growth.

好的。裡面有什麼東西嗎？或者你可以提醒我們資產達到 100 億美元的門檻。您知道時機以及可能會納入 5% 至 7% 成長的任何增量成本。

We're almost already there. You know this pullback and the Fed tightening slows things down, but we were ready to go over. And so everything we're doing today from a regulatory perspective, is if we're already there.

我們快到了。你知道，這次回調和聯準會的緊縮政策會減緩事情的發展，但我們已經準備好重新開始了。因此，從監管角度來看，我們今天所做的一切都是假設我們已經做到了這一點。

Okay, so it's already baked in.

好的，所以它已經烤好了。

Yeah.

是的。

And then if I could just sneak in a last one, just on buybacks. I'd always thought you guys were sensitive around tangible book value, and you'd buyback if the stock dipped below.

然後，如果我能偷偷地買最後一筆，只是在回購的話。我一直認為你們對有形帳面價值很敏感，如果股票跌破，你們就會回購。

And it looks like in the quarter you're buying on average below tangible book. But sounds like maybe that's not the right way to think about it going forward. Bill, you said maybe less price-sensitive than that and anticipate completing the program this year.

看起來您本季的平均購買量低於有形書籍。但聽起來這也許不是思考未來的正確方式。比爾，你說可能對價格不那麼敏感，並預計今年完成該計劃。

Yeah. I mean, I do remember saying that, that it makes all the sense in the world when it's below tangible book. But even now, given our retained earnings and the growth and the dividends, we still have room to buy back stock.

是的。我的意思是，我確實記得我說過，當它低於有形的書本時，世界上的一切都有意義。但即使是現在，考慮到我們的留存收益、成長和股息，我們仍然有回購股票的空間。

And the 900,000 shares over the course of this year and what we're seeing in terms of earnings, to me is not a dramatically large number. So I feel very comfortable with that. I can't say at any price, but for the foreseeable future I would stay on that plan.

今年的 90 萬股以及我們所看到的收益，對我來說並不是一個大數字。所以我對此感到很舒服。我不能說以任何代價，但在可預見的未來我會堅持這個計劃。

Right. Okay, thanks for the color.

正確的。好的，謝謝你的顏色。

You're welcome.

不客氣。

Thanks, Frank.

謝謝，弗蘭克。

Michael Perito, KBW.

邁克爾·佩里托，KBW。

Hey, guys. Happy New Year, good to hear from you. Thanks for taking my questions. Just a couple of follow-ups. One on just on the balance sheet makeup as we think about the loan opportunities and being opportunistic Frank.

大家好。新年快樂，很高興收到你的來信。感謝您回答我的問題。只是幾個後續行動。當我們考慮貸款機會並成為機會主義的弗蘭克時，其中之一就是資產負債表的組成。

And the environment we're coming out of/still in -- I mean is it, do you guys expect in the budget for the loan-to-deposit ratio to maybe drift lower as deposit growth kind of steadily outpaced loan growth. I don't even know if it's a caution or what the right word for it is. But is that just kind of the norm we're in for now in terms of what you guys would hope to see on the balance sheet growth side or not necessarily.

我們正在擺脫/仍然處於的環境——我的意思是，你們是否預計預算中貸存比可能會下降，因為存款成長穩步超過貸款成長。我什至不知道這是否是一個警告或正確的詞是什麼。但這是否只是我們目前所處的常態，就你們希望在資產負債表成長方面看到的情況而言，或者不一定。

Look, I know opportunistic is a really big wide word, but it really defines who we are and who we've been as a company. We've operated anywhere from about 105% loan-to-deposit ratio, up as high as 120%. We've averaged around where we are right now. We've been bouncing around between 108% and 112%. And sort of around a 110%, I think is where we are at the moment.

看，我知道機會主義是一個非常廣泛的詞，但它確實定義了我們是誰以及我們作為一家公司是誰。我們的貸存比從大約 105% 到高達 120% 不等。我們的平均大約是現在的水平。我們一直在 108% 到 112% 之間波動。我認為我們目前的情況大約是 110%。

Yeah, I'd like to see that number come in a bit. Just based on changes in the marketplace and things that we've seen, I think are doubling down on really re-examining the entire balance sheet and portfolio and list of clients and making sure we have the relationship-type clients that we are determined to have.

是的，我希望看到這個數字。僅僅基於市場的變化和我們所看到的事情，我認為我們正在加倍努力，真正重新檢查整個資產負債表、投資組合和客戶名單，並確保我們擁有我們決心要的關係型客戶。

I think we'll pressure that loan to deposit ratio lower. So I'm happy about some of the results we saw there. We saw it on, in some of the lending attributes relative to a little bit more C&I, a little bit more construction. So I think over time, yes, I would say all things being equal, that number should drift down.

我認為我們會降低貸存比。所以我對我們在那裡看到的一些結果感到高興。我們在一些貸款屬性中看到了這一點，相對於更多的商業和工業，更多的建設。所以我認為隨著時間的推移，是的，我會說在所有條件相同的情況下，這個數字應該會下降。

But again, we're going to be opportunistic. (technical difficulty) If there's a great opportunity to onboard a client that we think is going to create a lot of value for us going forward, we're going to do that. And so I don't want to guide to a number, but I would say the general direction would be for a lower loan-to-deposit ratio.

但我們還是會抓住機會。（技術難度）如果有一個很好的機會來吸引我們認為將為我們未來創造大量價值的客戶，我們就會這樣做。因此，我不想給一個數字，但我想說，總體方向是降低貸存比。

Helpful. And maybe switching over to an expense growth question. Just on the SBA side, I mean when you talk about the 5% to 7% expense growth, Bill, I imagine there's still some like FTE adds. Maybe not on a net basis, but like commercial lenders, SBA producers in the budget. Can you talk about that business?

有幫助。也許可以轉向費用增長問題。就 SBA 而言，我的意思是，當你談論 5% 到 7% 的費用增長時，比爾，我想仍然有一些像 FTE 那樣的增長。也許不是以淨額計算，而是像商業貸款機構、預算中的 SBA 生產者一樣。您能談談那項業務嗎？

And it seems like that's probably the most capital-efficient fee growth opportunity you guys have on the horizon. Just want to try to get a better handle of what that opportunity looks like today?

看起來這可能是你們即將面臨的最具資本效率的費用成長機會。只是想更好地把握今天的機會嗎？

Yeah, I think we continue to build that outfit for us, with some great people there and make sure we have the right support toward an increased portfolio and volume going through there. But it's baked into the numbers. We're not adding. We're not doubling the team.

是的，我認為我們會繼續為我們打造這樣的機構，那裡有一些優秀的人才，並確保我們獲得適當的支持，以增加投資組合和數量。但它已經融入了數字中。我們不添加。我們不會將團隊人數加倍。

We add people kind of one at a time around the organization. Same token, there are people that have left the institution. And so we think we've upgraded around the organization. We've hired some great people, some others have left, and the staff count increases has actually not been that high.

我們在組織中一次增加一個人。同樣的道理，也有人離開了機構。因此，我們認為我們已經圍繞組織進行了升級。我們聘請了一些優秀的人才，也有一些人離開了，而且員工數量的成長實際上並沒有那麼高。

Okay. And then just lastly for me. Just as we think about '24, some of the initiatives you guys have announced over the last couple of quarters, like Nymbus or even longer dated stuff like BoeFly.

好的。最後對我來說。正如我們對 24 世紀的思考一樣，你們在過去幾個季度宣布了一些舉措，例如 Nymbus 甚至是像 BoeFly 這樣過時的東西。

Any kind of deliverables or certain things that you're comfortable telling us from an expectation standpoint about where we can maybe start to see some of those things impact financials in '24? Or is it still not entirely kind of clear yet, the timing of some of those benefits?

您願意從期望的角度告訴我們任何類型的可交付成果或某些事情，我們可能會開始看到其中一些事情影響 24 年的財務狀況？或者，其中一些好處的時機尚未完全明確？

I think on the case of BoeFly, we've seen a lot of improvements around the entire company. It's part of what's driving our SBA division, and you're seeing some of those numbers there. We have been increasing pretty dramatically the number of franchise orders that we service on the BoeFly platform, which is driving other incremental business into the organization.

我認為就 BoeFly 而言，我們看到整個公司有很多改進。這是推動我們 SBA 部門發展的一部分，您可以在那裡看到其中的一些數字。我們在 BoeFly 平台上服務的特許經營訂單數量大幅增加，這正在推動其他增量業務進入組織。

BoeFly really acts as sort of a linchpin or a center pin for lots of other things that are going on within the company, which just show up in other places. And hard to just put on a BoeFly, quote, unquote, balance sheet or financial statement. But we're very, very happy with the results that are accruing there. And at some point, I do think we will be able to show some level of financial metrics for that unit.

BoeFly 確實充當了公司內部正在發生的許多其他事情的關鍵或中心銷，這些事情只是出現在其他地方。而且很難直接在 BoeFly 上進行報價、取消報價、資產負債表或財務報表。但我們對那裡所取得的成果感到非常非常滿意。在某些時候，我確實認為我們將能夠展示該部門某種程度的財務指標。

On the Nymbus side, we just launched that family and friends recently. The platform is up and running and we're seeing some successes there. I don't have to remind you that entire vertical was turned upside down in March and April. And so we're rethinking how we're going to go after that marketplace and where do we want to add value for that specific vertical. But the Nymbus platform is up, VentureOn is live, and we're pretty confident that that's going to make a difference as we move through '24 and into '25.

在 Nymbus 方面，我們最近剛推出了家人和朋友。該平台已啟動並運行，我們看到了一些成功。我不必提醒您，整個垂直領域在三月和四月發生了天翻地覆的變化。因此，我們正在重新思考我們將如何進入這個市場，以及我們希望在哪裡為該特定垂直領域增加價值。但 Nymbus 平台已經上線，VentureOn 也已上線，我們非常有信心這將在我們度過 24 年並進入 25 年時產生影響。

We're also implementing MANTL throughout the organization, the omnichannel deposit origination. And look, the hope there is that we improve conversion rates and that will lead to higher deposit origination.

我們也在整個組織內實作 MANTL，即全通路存款發起。看，我們希望提高轉換率，這將導致更高的存款來源。

Great, very good guys. Thanks for taking my time and for the color this morning.

太棒了，非常好的人。感謝您今天早上花時間和顏色。

(Operator Instructions) Nick Cucharale, Hovde Group.

（操作員說明）Nick Cucharale，Hovde Group。

Good morning, everyone, how are you? (multiple speakers) Just to follow up on the composition of the loan growth. Just given the strong C&I momentum and the positive construction commentary. Is it your expectation that most of the loan growth this year is driven by those two segments?

早安，大家好，你們好嗎？（多名發言者）只是為了跟進貸款成長的組成。鑑於強勁的工商業勢頭和積極的建設評論。您是否預計今年大部分貸款成長是由這兩個領域推動的？

Yeah, C&I and construction.

是的，工商業和建築。

Yeah, I think that's fair.

是的，我認為這是公平的。

So in the pipeline --

所以在管道中--

Yeah, I think there are other CRE opportunities that are out there that we continue to -- we're not abandoning any of our clients or any of the verticals that we're in, but we are seeing momentum. And we have seen for years momentum building in the C&I portfolio. And construction's always been a place where we've had very deep amount of experience. And that portfolio rises and falls, depending on what's going on in the economy.

是的，我認為我們繼續存在其他 CRE 機會——我們不會放棄任何客戶或我們所在的任何垂直行業，但我們看到了勢頭。多年來，我們看到 C&I 投資組合的勢頭正在增強。建築業一直是我們擁有豐富經驗的領域。該投資組合的上升和下降取決於經濟狀況。

I have to tell you; I don't think I've ever seen a stronger time or a better time to be in construction based on the demographics, based on what's going on, based on where people want to live, and based on just the available supply of housing units. So I would look to increase it even more if I could.

我必須告訴你;我認為，根據人口統計、根據正在發生的事情、根據人們想要居住的地方以及根據現有住房單元的供應，我認為我從未見過比建築業更強大或更好的時機。因此，如果可以的話，我希望進一步增加它。

It's a very fast-moving asset. So as quickly as you put it on the books, it comes off. So typically, these projects last anywhere from 10 or 11 months out to 18 or so months. So the turnover is very, very quick in the construction portfolio. So maintaining -- even maintaining standing still in that portfolio means we're putting a lot of assets on.

這是一種流動非常快的資產。因此，只要你把它寫在書上，它就會很快脫落。通常，這些項目會持續 10 或 11 個月到 18 個月左右。因此，建築組合的周轉非常非常快。因此，維持－甚至維持該投資組合的靜止狀態，意味著我們要投入大量資產。

That was very helpful. And then as it relates to the $10 billion in asset threshold. Is there an incremental cost that you need to incur or is that already baked into the numbers? And then secondarily, are there any containment strategies you plan to pursue in order to manage that crossing until 2025?

這非常有幫助。然後涉及 100 億美元的資產門檻。您是否需要承擔增量成本，或者該成本是否已計入數字中？其次，您是否計劃採取任何遏制策略，以便在 2025 年之前管理這項跨越？

I would say no. (multiple speakers) Build risk controls related to being over $10 billion. So yeah, there's more to come, but it's no more of an increase than what's in those numbers that I'm forecasting for you.

我會說不。（多名發言者）建立與超過 100 億美元相關的風險控制。所以，是的，還會有更多的事情發生，但不會比我為您預測的數字增加更多。

Perfect. And then just lastly for me. Just to clarify in the 5% to 7% expense growth guide. That year-over-year increase excludes the special assessment in the fourth quarter, correct?

完美的。最後對我來說。只是為了澄清 5% 至 7% 的費用成長指南。這個同比增長不包括第四季度的特別評估，對嗎？

Correct.

正確的。

Thank you for taking my questions.

感謝您回答我的問題。

Great.

偉大的。

Matthew Breese, Stephens.

馬修·布里斯，史蒂芬斯。

Hey, good morning. (multiple speakers) I was hoping for some additional color on new loan yields. I heard you loud and clear on C&I and construction spreads. But as you look at the pipeline today, what is kind of the blended all-in rate? And oppositely, what is rolling off as you put these new loans on?

嗨，早安。（多名發言者）我希望新貸款收益率能有一些額外的色彩。我清楚地聽到了您關於 C&I 和建築價差的聲音。但當你看看今天的管道時，混合全押率是多少？相反，當你發放這些新貸款時，會發生什麼？

Well, it's about 825 to 850, is the new rate going on. And the loans coming off is in the -- that 7%. So is that based on the volume and that spread, it does add basis points, five to eight basis points a quarter as we move forward. In the past we've had expense -- deposit costs increase greater than that.

嗯，大約是 825 到 850，這是新的匯率。發放的貸款佔 7%。因此，根據交易量和利差，隨著我們的前進，它確實會增加基點，每季增加 5 到 8 個基點。過去我們的開支－存款成本的增加比這更大。

So it really depends on how much volume we see going forward. The greater the growth rate, the greater the increase in our margin, in my view.

所以這實際上取決於我們未來看到的數量。在我看來，成長率越高，我們的利潤率成長就越大。

Considering what you just said, the loan coming off 7% range, what's going on is north of eight? But then considering your average loan yield this quarter is kind of 580ish, does that --

考慮到你剛才所說的，貸款利率低於 7%，超過 8% 是怎麼回事？但考慮到本季的平均貸款收益率約為 580 左右，是嗎？--

Right.

正確的。

Does that imply that the pace of payoffs is really slow right now? Or could you characterize that?

這是否意味著目前的回報速度真的很慢？或者你能描述一下這一點嗎？

I would agree with (multiple speakers) -- Yes, yeah it is slow. And that number relative to the size of the $9 billion interest-earning assets, isn't as big as you might think. And so the impact of it is not all that great.

我同意（多個發言者）——是的，是的，速度很慢。相對於 90 億美元生息資產的規模，這個數字並不像您想像的那麼大。所以它的影響並不是那麼大。

(multiple speakers) -- Five years ago, we were less than $5 billion in size. (multiple speakers) -- So those loans that are renewing are small relative to (technical difficulties)

（多名發言者）—五年前，我們的規模還不到 50 億美元。 （多位發言者）－因此，那些續簽的貸款相對於（技術難點）

That's right.

這是正確的。

That's right, okay. And then considering what you just said, which is the north of 8% stuff is going on, and we're starting to see stability in deposit costs. It feels like to me as we enter the middle part of the year that the NIM expansion on Fed cut should be greater than five basis points.

就是這樣，好吧。然後考慮到你剛才所說的，8% 的事情正在發生，我們開始看到存款成本的穩定性。在我看來，當我們進入今年年中時，聯準會降息導致的淨利差擴張應該大於五個基點。

Well, it could be Matt. I am being conservative; I'll tell you why. One worry I have, is that the quantitative tightening is even more than we expect. And that's going to suck deposits out of the system and makes the competition with deposits greater. And it's going to slow the decline in the rate of deposits, which means the beta of 50 could be lower. So that's the offset to the projection you just sort of just made.

嗯，可能是馬特。我比較保守；我會告訴你原因。我擔心的一個問題是，量化緊縮程度甚至超出了我們的預期。這會將存款從系統中吸走，並使存款的競爭更加激烈。這將減緩存款利率的下降，這意味著 50 的貝塔值可能會更低。這就是您剛剛所做的投影的偏移量。

It's not just a rate gain?

不只是利率的提升？

Right.

正確的。

Understood, okay. And then turning -- I'm sorry to interrupt you, go ahead.

明白了，好吧。然後轉身——很抱歉打擾你，請繼續。

No, go ahead, I'm sorry.

不，請繼續，對不起。

You had mentioned kind of a normalization of charge-offs --

你提到了沖銷的正常化——

Right.

正確的。

That being said, the reserve was down 10 basis quarter. I'm assuming some of that was taxi. But I was hoping you could just comment on lower reserve level heading into a year where credit might normalize? Can we anticipate some growth throughout the year?

話雖如此，準備金季下降了 10 個基點。我假設其中一些是出租車。但我希望您能就進入信貸可能正常化的一年降低準備金水準發表評論？我們可以預期全年會有一些成長嗎？

Yes, you were a little bit garbled there. But we had about, I think it's 15 or 16 basis points of charge-offs on '23. There's nothing that I see specifically that's making me say the number should be larger. But I think everyone is sort of agreeing that in the 20s is not a bad way to project charge-offs. So that's one part of your question.

是的，你那裡有點亂碼。但我認為 23 年我們有 15 或 16 個基點的沖銷。我沒有看到任何具體的東西讓我說這個數字應該更大。但我認為每個人都同意，20 多歲並不是一個壞的預測沖銷方式。這是你問題的一部分。

The other is the reserve ratio. It went down, but that's more of an accounting geography. Because those balances, those reserves were in a specific reserve, and they were taken out and taken off the loan balance. So there was no real change to our allowance coverage per se. And being under one -- listen, this is the way our CECL model works. We have additional -- a lot of additional qualitative amounts in there. And so we feel very comfortable with where our allowance is today.

另一個是準備金率。它下降了，但這更多的是會計地理學。因為這些餘額、準備金屬於特定準備金，它們被取出並從貸款餘額中扣除。因此，我們的津貼範圍本身並沒有真正的改變。聽著，這就是我們的 CECL 模型的工作方式。我們還有更多的——很多額外的定性數量。因此，我們對今天的津貼感到非常滿意。

Okay. And then along the credit lines, can you provide us an update of what your -- I know it's small, but your rent regulated multifamily. What's your exposure there? And have you seen any sort of credit deterioration?

好的。然後，沿著信用額度，您能否向我們提供您的最新情況——我知道規模很小，但您的多戶住宅受租金管制。你在那裡的曝光率是多少？您是否看到任何形式的信用惡化？

It was under $100 million. And for the most part, so well, there's one or two situations that we're working on, but we're working through those. We have a lot of tools in our arsenal for it. So I don't see anything material coming from that small portfolio.

當時還不到 1 億美元。在大多數情況下，我們正在處理一兩種情況，但我們正在解決這些問題。我們的武器庫中有很多工具。所以我沒有看到這個小投資組合有任何實質內容。

Okay. And then last one for me. I've covered you guys for a long time, it's a challenging rate, challenging macro environment, I think given that you're generally under earning particularly versus kind of historical levels. As you look out '24, '25, when do you think you can get profitability as measured by ROA back to a over 1% level, somewhere we're all more accustomed to seeing you?

好的。然後是我的最後一張。我已經報道你們很久了，這是一個具有挑戰性的利率，具有挑戰性的宏觀環境，我認為考慮到你們的收入普遍低於歷史水準。當您展望 24 年、25 年時，您認為什麼時候可以將 ROA 衡量的盈利能力恢復到 1% 以上的水平（我們都更習慣在某個地方看到您）？

Well, I am optimistic about the years beyond '24. There's a lot of this, there's hundreds of millions, if not billions of loans that are going to reprice either maturing or adjustable rate. So even though rates are coming down, our adjustable portfolio is going to reprice higher.

嗯，我對 24 年後的歲月持樂觀態度。這樣的情況有很多，有數億甚至數十億的貸款將重新定價，無論是到期利率還是可調整利率。因此，即使利率下降，我們的可調整投資組合仍將重新定價更高。

So when you combine all those things where rates coming down. Potentially, Matt, we could be a situation where our deposit costs are going down and our loan yields keep going up. And that would get us to spreads over 340. And if we're in that level, we would certainly be back to 15% ROA.

因此，當你將所有這些因素結合起來時，利率就會下降。馬特，我們的存款成本可能會下降，而貸款收益率可能會持續上升。這將使我們的點差超過 340。如果我們處於這個水平，我們的 ROA 肯定會回到 15%。

Got it, okay. That's all I had. I appreciate you taking my questions, thank you.

明白了，好吧。這就是我所擁有的一切。感謝您回答我的問題，謝謝。

Yeah.

是的。

I'll turn the call back to management for any closing remarks.

我會將電話轉回給管理階層，讓其結束語。

Well, thanks again, for everyone's time today. And certainly, we look forward to speaking to you again during our first quarter conference call, that will take place in April. So everyone have a very nice day. Thank you.

好吧，再次感謝大家今天抽出時間。當然，我們期待在四月舉行的第一季電話會議上再次與您交談。所以每個人都度過了愉快的一天。謝謝。

That does conclude today's conference call, and we thank you all for joining. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束，我們感謝大家的加入。您現在可以斷開連線。