Valley National Bancorp (VLY) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Valley National Bancorp first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call.

各位好，感謝您耐心等候。歡迎參加 Valley National Bancorp 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。

(Operator Instructions)

（接線員指示）

Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, Andrew Jianette, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

請注意，今天的會議將被錄音。現在我想把會議交給今天的發言人——投資人關係部的 Andrew Jianette。請開始。

Good morning, and welcome to Valley's first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. I'm joined today by CEO, Ira Robbins; and CFO, Travis Lan. Our quarterly earnings release and supporting documents are available at valley.com. Reconciliations of any non-GAAP measures mentioned on the call can be found in today's earnings release and presentation.

各位早安，歡迎參加 Valley 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。今天與我一同出席的有執行長 Ira Robbins 與財務長 Travis Lan。我們的季度財報新聞稿及相關支援文件可於 valley.com 取得。電話會議中提及之任何非 GAAP 指標的調節表，可在今日的財報新聞稿與簡報中查閱。

Please also note slide 2 of our earnings presentation and remember that comments made today may include forward-looking statements about Valley National Bancorp and the banking industry. For more information on these forward-looking statements and associated risk factors, please refer to our SEC filings, including Forms 8-K, 10-Q, and 10-K.

也請參閱我們財報簡報的第 2 頁，並請記得今天的發言可能包含關於 Valley National Bancorp 及銀行業的前瞻性陳述。關於這些前瞻性陳述及相關風險因素的更多資訊，請參考我們向 SEC 提交的文件，包括 8-K、10-Q 與 10-K 表格。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Ira Robbins.

接下來，我把電話交給 Ira Robbins。

Thank you, Andrew. Valley delivered another strong quarter with net income of approximately $164 million or $0.28 per diluted share. Excluding certain non-core items, adjusted net income was $169 million or $0.29 per diluted share. Despite traditional first-quarter headwinds, including elevated payroll taxes and a lower day count, adjusted pre-provision net revenue increased to $253 million during the quarter, providing a strong jumping off point for the rest of the year.

謝謝你，Andrew。Valley 本季再度交出亮眼成績，淨利約 1.64 億美元，稀釋後每股盈餘為 0.28 美元。排除若干非核心項目後，調整後淨利為 1.69 億美元，稀釋後每股盈餘為 0.29 美元。儘管第一季通常面臨逆風，包括較高的薪資稅與較少的天數，調整後備抵提列前淨收益（adjusted pre-provision net revenue）本季仍增至 2.53 億美元，為今年其餘期間奠定了強勁的起點。

While Travis will provide additional detail on the financial performance, I wanted to spend my time discussing strategic execution and long-term value creation. We have spent the past few years deliberately reshaping this organization. We have strengthened our balance sheet and upgraded our operating model while supporting incremental investments in talent, technologies, and capabilities that we believe will be impactful over the long run. The cumulative impact of those efforts has become increasingly evident in our recent financial results. Just as importantly, these enhancements have positively impacted our daily operations and ways of working.

Travis 將進一步說明財務表現的細節，而我想把時間用在討論策略執行與長期價值創造。我們在過去幾年有計畫地重塑這個組織。我們強化了資產負債表並升級營運模式，同時持續加碼投資人才、科技與能力建置，我們相信這些在長期將帶來顯著影響。這些努力的累積效果，在近期財務結果中愈發明顯。同樣重要的是，這些提升也正面影響了我們的日常營運與工作方式。

Strategically, our focus is consistent and clear. First, we are building a higher quality and increasingly resilient funding franchise. Our emphasis on core deposit generation is not just about short-term pricing advantages. We are focused on winning primary operating relationships, deepening engagement across our client base and creating a stable funding engine that can support our growth aspirations across cycles. The combination of scalable specialty deposit verticals, enhanced treasury management capabilities and an improving client experience has enabled us to better compete across markets and channels.

在策略上，我們的重點一致且清晰。第一，我們正在打造更高品質、且更具韌性的資金（funding）特許經營（franchise）。我們對核心存款（core deposit）成長的重視，不僅是為了短期的定價優勢；我們著重於贏得主要往來（primary operating）關係、深化客戶群的互動，並建立可跨景氣循環支撐成長願景的穩定資金引擎。可擴展的專業存款垂直領域（specialty deposit verticals）、強化的財資管理（treasury management）能力，以及持續改善的客戶體驗相結合，使我們能在各市場與通路更具競爭力。

Secondly, we are pursuing diverse relationship-focused loan growth. We are intentionally allocating capital towards businesses, geographies, and industry verticals where we see durable demand and strong risk-adjusted returns. This includes business banking and middle market opportunities in our high-quality markets as well as specific niches like health care, where we have a differentiated value proposition.

第二，我們追求多元且以關係為核心的放款成長。我們有意識地將資本配置到我們認為需求具持久性、且風險調整後報酬（risk-adjusted returns）強勁的業務、地理區域與產業垂直領域。這包括我們高品質市場中的企業金融（business banking）與中型市場（middle market）機會，以及像醫療保健等特定利基領域，在該領域我們具備差異化的價值主張。

To fund the strategic growth, we have remained disciplined about selectively exiting lower-return transactional clients that do not align with our future strategic focus. This is not about maximizing short-term growth. We are building a relationship-focused portfolio that we believe will perform consistently across economic environments.

為了支應策略性成長資金，我們也保持紀律，選擇性退出那些報酬較低、以交易為主且不符合我們未來策略重點的客戶。這並非為了最大化短期成長；我們正在打造一個以關係為核心的投資組合，我們相信它能在不同經濟環境下都維持穩健表現。

Thirdly, we continue to focus on operating leverage and scalability. Many of the investments that we have undertaken over the last few years, including our core conversion, data infrastructure enhancement and organizational redesign were made with a long-term lens. As a result, we are increasingly able to grow deposits, loans, and revenue faster than our fixed cost investments and without adding unnecessary complexity. We view this as a critical advantage for a regional bank that operates in an underserved size range, which still compete regularly with upmarket institutions.

第三，我們持續聚焦營運槓桿與可擴展性。我們在過去幾年所進行的多項投資——包括核心系統轉換（core conversion）、資料基礎建設強化與組織重設——皆以長期視角規劃。因此，我們愈來愈能在不增加不必要複雜度的情況下，使存款、放款與營收的成長速度快於固定成本投資。我們認為，對於一家在服務規模帶（size range）仍相對被忽視、但又經常與更大型機構競爭的區域性銀行而言，這是一項關鍵優勢。

That brings me to value positioning around artificial intelligence, which we believe represents a meaningful inflection point for the banking industry. Valley's approach to AI reflects a balance between our pragmatic relationship-led culture and the acknowledgement that these technologies can enable us to re-imagine how work is done across our company.

接著談到我們在人工智慧方面的價值定位。我們相信，人工智慧代表銀行業一個重要的拐點。Valley 對 AI 的作法，反映出在務實、以關係為導向的文化與承認這些技術能讓我們重新想像公司各項工作如何完成之間，取得平衡。

We believe these rapidly accelerating capabilities can augment the productivity of our associates, enhance decision-making, improve operational efficiency, and most importantly, position Valley to better serve our diverse client base.

我們相信，這些快速加速的能力可提升同仁生產力、強化決策、改善營運效率；最重要的是，讓 Valley 能更好地服務我們多元的客戶群。

Our dedication to improving the granularity, consistency and infrastructure around our data over the last few years has been a key underpinning in our ability to effectively utilize AI tools today. We invested early in AI talent and advanced analytics and have embedded certain capability into our operating model in the wake of our core conversion. Already, AI is helping bankers prioritize opportunities and better understand client needs.

過去幾年我們致力於提升資料的細緻度、一致性與基礎設施，這是我們今天能有效運用 AI 工具的關鍵基礎。我們早期即投資 AI 人才與進階分析，並在核心系統轉換後，將部分能力嵌入我們的營運模式中。如今，AI 已在協助銀行人員優先排序機會並更深入理解客戶需求。

We already utilized AI to improve access to our internal knowledge base to rethink legacy back-office processes, including card service requests, certain elements of underwriting and risk monitoring to accelerate data analytics and software development. Specific use cases implemented to date include a customer-facing voice AI agent that proactively contact past due auto loan customers to motivate payment, fraud tools to verify transaction legitimacy and to prioritize suspicious activity alerts and AI enhancements to our sales process to optimize the next best product offer.

我們也已運用 AI 來改善內部知識庫的存取，並重新思考既有後台流程，包括卡片服務申請、承作審核（underwriting）的部分環節與風險監控，以加速資料分析與軟體開發。迄今已落地的具體應用案例包括：面向客戶的語音 AI 代理人，主動聯繫汽車貸款逾期客戶以促進還款；用於驗證交易真實性並優先處理可疑活動警示的反詐欺工具；以及對銷售流程的 AI 強化，以最佳化下一個最適產品（next best product）推薦。

These are small examples have a much broader effort to unlock our associates to spend more time doing what they do best, building relationships and delivering high-value advice. We expect the capabilities will continue to translate into higher productivity, better risk outcomes and a more consistent client experience less friction, all while preserving the human element that defines our brand.

這些只是更大規模努力中的小例子；我們的目標是釋放同仁的時間，讓他們能把更多精力投入在最擅長的事情上——建立關係並提供高價值建議。我們預期，這些能力將持續轉化為更高的生產力、更佳的風險結果，以及更一致、摩擦更少的客戶體驗，同時保留定義我們品牌的人性化元素。

Looking forward, our priorities remain consistent. We plan to continue to selectively invest in growth, maintain our balance sheet discipline and deploy capital thoughtfully. We are confident that the foundation we have built positions Valley to navigate uncertainty, capitalize on opportunities around us and deliver sustainable returns over time.

展望未來，我們的優先事項仍然一致。我們計畫持續選擇性投資成長、維持資產負債表紀律，並審慎部署資本。我們有信心，已建立的基礎能讓 Valley 在不確定性中穩健前行、把握周遭機會，並在時間推移中交付可持續的報酬。

With that, I will turn the call over to Travis to walk through the financial results in more detail.

接下來，我把電話交給 Travis，請他更詳細說明財務結果。

Thank you, Ira. I wanted to start by giving a brief update on our 2026 financial expectations. As a result of continued strong core deposit growth, solid loan demand in our markets and a favourable yield curve backdrop, we believe that annual net interest income growth will trend towards the higher end of our previously provided range.

謝謝你，Ira。我想先簡要更新我們對 2026 年財務展望的看法。由於核心存款持續強勁成長、我們市場的放款需求穩健，以及殖利率曲線環境有利，我們認為全年淨利息收入（net interest income）成長將趨近於先前提供區間的高端。

We expect more meaningful acceleration in the second half of the year with no significant change to our expectations for non-interest income, non-interest expenses or credit costs, we believe there is modest upside to our previous guidance range and existing consensus estimates. From a balance sheet perspective, we continue to believe that our CET1 ratio will remain towards the higher end of our target range.

我們預期下半年將出現更明顯的加速；在非利息收入、非利息費用與信用成本的預期沒有重大變動的情況下，我們認為相較先前的指引區間與目前市場一致預估（consensus estimates），存在溫和的上行空間。從資產負債表角度來看，我們仍認為 CET1 比率將維持在目標區間的較高端。

Slide 12 illustrates the execution of our capital strategy during the quarter. We generated over 30 basis points of regulatory capital in the period. Over half of this supported well-funded organic loan growth, and we used roughly a third of our capital generation to buy back stock. Relative to last quarter, slightly more capital was used for the buyback.

第 12 頁展示了本季資本策略的執行情況。我們在本期間產生超過 30 個基點的監管資本（regulatory capital）。其中超過一半用於支持資金充足的有機放款成長，而我們約使用三分之一的資本生成量來回購股票。相較上一季，用於回購的資本略多。

Slide 13 illustrates the strong momentum in our deposit gathering efforts. During the quarter, we increased direct customer deposits by over $900 million, which enabled us to pay off nearly $300 million of maturing higher-cost brokered deposits and $350 million of higher cost FHLB advances. As a result of the strong direct deposit growth, loans to nonbrokered deposits improved to 106% from 107% last quarter and 112% a year ago.

第 13 頁顯示我們在吸收存款方面的強勁動能。本季我們的直接客戶存款增加超過 9 億美元，使我們得以償還近 3 億美元到期的高成本經紀存款（brokered deposits），以及 3.5 億美元的高成本 FHLB 預借款（advances）。受惠於直接存款強勁成長，放款對非經紀存款比率（loans to nonbrokered deposits）由上季的 107% 改善至 106%，也較一年前的 112% 明顯改善。

Total deposit costs declined 18 basis points during the quarter, reflecting proactive reductions in core customer deposit costs and the funding rotation I just mentioned. We remain laser-focused on improving our funding profile to further de-risk our balance sheet and drive continued profitability improvement. We anticipate the total deposit growth will be towards the high end of our 5% to 7% guidance range for the year.

本季總存款成本下降 18 個基點，反映我們主動下調核心客戶存款成本，以及我剛提到的資金結構輪替。我們仍高度聚焦於改善資金結構，以進一步降低資產負債表風險並推動獲利能力持續提升。我們預期全年總存款成長將落在 5% 至 7% 指引區間的高端。

Turning to slide 16. Total loans grew nearly $700 million or 5.5% annualized during the quarter. Owner-occupied CRE, particularly within our health care specialty vertical continues to contribute to our growth as regulatory CRE declined modestly. C&I loans grew nearly $150 million during the quarter, reflecting strength across existing geographies and business lines as well as contributions from newly onboarded talent. We anticipate that loan growth for the year will be between the midpoint and high end of our previous 4% to 6% range.

接著看第 16 頁。本季總放款增加近 7 億美元，折合年化成長率為 5.5%。自用型商用不動產（owner-occupied CRE），特別是我們醫療保健專業垂直領域，持續貢獻成長；同時，受監管口徑的 CRE（regulatory CRE）則小幅下降。C&I 放款本季增加近 1.5 億美元，反映既有地理區域與業務線的強勁表現，以及新加入人才的貢獻。我們預期全年放款成長將介於先前 4% 至 6% 區間的中點至高端。

Slide 19 illustrates the fourth consecutive quarter of net interest income expansion, which occurred despite day count headwinds associated with the first-quarter. This increase was the result of solid loan growth, core deposit generation and repricing dynamics on both sides of the balance sheet. Net interest margin was flat from the fourth-quarter, which, combined with our continued. Repricing tailwinds positioned us well to achieve the year-end margin guidance that we laid out previously.

第19頁顯示淨利息收入已連續第四個季度擴張，儘管第一季受到與天數計算相關的不利因素影響。此一增長來自穩健的放款成長、核心存款的增加，以及資產負債表兩端的重定價動態。淨利差較第四季持平；在此基礎上，結合我們持續的重定價順風，使我們有利於達成先前提出的年底淨利差指引。

Despite the expected normalization of non-interest income from the fourth-quarter, we posted strong first-quarter results as compared to one year ago. On a year-over-year basis, non-interest income was up 18% driven primarily by capital markets and deposit service charge revenues. These results are in line with our expectations, and we believe set the stage for further improvement throughout the year.

儘管非利息收入如預期自第四季回歸常態，我們第一季相較一年前仍繳出強勁表現。以年增率來看，非利息收入成長18%，主要由資本市場與存款服務手續費收入帶動。這些結果符合我們的預期，我們認為也為全年進一步改善奠定基礎。

Turning to slide 22. Reported noninterest expenses increased to $310 million in the first-quarter from $299 million in the fourth-quarter. On an adjusted basis, however, noninterest expenses were effectively flat as seasonal payroll tax headwinds were largely mitigated by modest reductions in other compensation costs, professional and legal fees, and adjusted FDIC insurance expense.

接著看第22頁。第一季列報的非利息費用由第四季的2.99億美元增加至3.10億美元。然而，以調整後口徑來看，非利息費用基本持平，因季節性薪資稅的不利因素大多被其他薪酬成本、專業與法律費用，以及調整後FDIC保險費用的小幅下降所抵銷。

As a result of our cultural focus on expense control, Valley's efficiency ratio declined to 53.1% in the first-quarter from 53.5% in the fourth-quarter and 55.9% a year ago. We continue to believe that positive operating leverage will accelerate throughout the year, which is expected to result in an efficiency ratio trending towards 50% by the end of 2026.

在我們重視費用控管的企業文化帶動下，Valley 的效率比率於第一季由第四季的53.5%降至53.1%，亦低於一年前的55.9%。我們仍相信正向的營運槓桿將在今年加速展現，預期至2026年底效率比率將朝50%趨近。

Slide 23 illustrates our asset quality and reserve trends. Non-accrual and accruing past due loans each declined modestly during the quarter, primarily as a result of positive migration of CRE out of each bucket. Net charge-offs as a percentage of total loans declined to 14 basis points from 18 basis points last quarter and the modest uptick in provision expense reflected the quarter's strong loan growth. Allowance coverage remained generally consistent around 1.2%, and we do not anticipate material changes to this level throughout the year.

第23頁呈現我們的資產品質與備抵趨勢。無論是不計息（non-accrual）貸款或計息逾期貸款，本季皆小幅下降，主要因商用不動產（CRE）在各分類中出現正向遷移。淨沖銷占總放款比率由上季的18個基點降至14個基點；提存費用的小幅上升則反映本季強勁的放款成長。備抵覆蓋率大致維持在約1.2%，我們預期今年內該水準不會出現重大變動。

Turning to slide 24. Tangible book value increased approximately 1% during the quarter as solid retained earnings growth was partially offset by an OCI headwind associated with our available-for-sale securities portfolio. Regulatory capital ratios declined modestly as a result of strong loan growth and our stock buyback activity.

接著看第24頁。有形帳面價值於本季增加約1%，主要因穩健的留存盈餘成長，部分被與可供出售（AFS）證券投資組合相關的OCI不利因素所抵銷。監理資本比率因放款強勁成長及我們的庫藏股回購活動而小幅下降。

Based on our preliminary analysis, we estimate that regulatory capital ratios would increase between 80 and 100 basis points under the proposed Basel III standardized approach. Until those rules are formalized, we continue to anticipate that our CET1 ratio will remain towards the higher end of our targeted guidance range.

根據我們的初步分析，在提議中的巴塞爾III標準法（Basel III standardized approach）下，監理資本比率估計可上升80至100個基點。在相關規則正式定案之前，我們仍預期CET1比率將維持在目標指引區間的較高端。

With that, I will turn the call back to the operator to begin Q&A. Thank you.

接下來我把電話交回給接線員，開始問答環節。謝謝。

(Operator Instructions)

（接線員指示）

Manan Gosalia, Morgan Stanley.

Manan Gosalia，摩根士丹利。

My first question is on the NII side. You're pointing to the higher end of the NII guide, strong deposit growth already, strong loan growth. Can you talk about some of the inputs around the NII outlook today versus your outlook in January, the ways in which you can drive funding costs lower even if we don't get more rate cuts?

我的第一個問題是關於淨利息收入（NII）。你們提到NII指引偏向區間高端、目前存款成長強勁、放款成長也很強。能否談談相較於你們1月的展望，現在NII展望的一些關鍵假設有哪些不同？以及即使未來沒有更多降息，你們有哪些方式可以進一步降低資金成本？

Yes. Thanks, Manan. This is Travis. Relative to where we were coming into the year, we had assumed 2 Fed cuts as of 12/31. Obviously, those are out of the forecast.

好的，謝謝你，Manan。我是Travis。相較於我們在年初時的情況，我們在12/31時的假設是聯準會會降息兩次。很明顯，這些已不在預測之中。

But as we've said pretty consistently, we're neutral to the front end of the curve. So the elimination of those cuts in the model is not overly impactful to our NII outlook. We are more exposed to the belly and longer end of the curve, and there's been some migration higher there, which has been incrementally helpful.

但如我們一直相當一致地提到，我們對殖利率曲線前端的曝險是中性的。因此，模型中移除這些降息，對我們的NII展望影響不大。我們更偏向曝險在曲線中段與長端，而那一段利率有所上移，對我們帶來了些許增量助益。

From a deposit cost perspective, even if we're unable to materially reduce core customer deposit costs in a vacuum, we still have what we view to be pretty significant tailwinds from the structural location of higher-cost wholesale funding into lower cost core. And that's what I think has given us so much confidence about the margin trajectory that you've seen play out over the last year or two and why we continue to have confidence through the end of the year and into 2027.

從存款成本角度來看，即使在不考慮其他因素下，我們無法實質降低核心客戶存款成本，我們仍認為存在相當顯著的順風：也就是把較高成本的批發資金結構性地轉向較低成本的核心資金。這也是我認為讓我們對你在過去一兩年看到的淨利差走勢如此有信心的原因，並且為何我們對今年底以及延伸到2027年仍保持信心。

That's really helpful. And then, Ira, maybe for you, you spoke about investing in AI early and the benefits of that to drive going forward. Are there any areas where you think you need to accelerate the investment spend there? Or is a lot of the investment spend going to be self-funded from here? So if you can just help us with how to think about the expense outlook this year and next year and how we should think about operating leveraging forward?

這很有幫助。接著，Ira，可能想請教你：你提到早期投資AI，以及這對未來推動的好處。你認為有哪些領域需要加速投資支出？或者接下來多數投資支出會由自身資金（self-funded）支應？也請協助我們理解今年與明年的費用展望，以及未來營運槓桿應如何看待？

I think it's a significant opportunity for us and really for the entire industry as to how we think about how we service clients from an operating expense perspective and then also how we enhance the revenue side of it as well. I think for us, when we think about the expense that would go to it, we've always been very mindful of what the efficiency ratio is within the organization and how we self-fund a lot of what we've done here. We've spent about $450 million on CapEx in the last seven to eight years versus a $50 million number in the seven to eight year cumulative period before while still maintaining a very efficient organization.

我認為這對我們、其實也對整個產業而言，都是一個重大機會：一方面從營運費用角度思考如何服務客戶，另一方面也能提升收入端。我們在思考相關費用投入時，一直非常留意組織內的效率比率，以及我們如何自籌資金來支應我們在這裡做的許多事情。過去七到八年我們在資本支出（CapEx）上投入約4.5億美元，相較於此前七到八年累計僅約5,000萬美元，但同時仍維持非常高效率的組織。

When I became CEO, I think we were at 3,350 employees and $20 billion in size. Today, we're 3,607 employees and $64 billion in size. So having a more efficient organization, the more we can put that obviously provides an opportunity to really enhance the AI spend as well as other opportunities within the organization. Just over the last year, we declined about 100 employees within the organization. And as we think about the reduction in some of those roles, we're definitely enhancing the opportunities and reinvesting some of that back into AI that we think is going to be a lot more productive moving forward.

我擔任CEO時，我們大約有3,350名員工、規模約200億美元。今天，我們有3,607名員工、規模達640億美元。因此，組織越有效率，我們能投入的資源越多，這顯然也提供機會去強化AI投入以及組織內其他機會。僅在過去一年，我們組織內員工人數減少約100人。當我們思考部分職務的縮減時，我們確實在強化相關機會，並將其中一部分再投資回AI，我們認為這在未來會更具生產力。

Feddie Strickland, Hovde Group.

Feddie Strickland，Hovde Group。

I was just wondering if you could talk about the competitive landscape on the retail deposit side, maybe how that's changed and whether that's really shifted its broad expectations and more cuts seem to fizzle out?

我想請問你們能否談談零售存款端的競爭態勢，可能它如何改變，以及在更廣泛的預期轉變、更多降息似乎逐漸落空的情況下，這是否也出現了明顯的變化？

Yes. Thanks, Feddie. This is Travis. Look, it does remain competitive out there for, I'd say, consumer deposits. I mean, as rates have kind of backed up, you see it in the offered rates that are posted in branches and online. I would just say, for us, I mean, obviously, the consumer element is a component of our anticipated deposit growth but the majority does come from the commercial side, and that would include small business and business banking in that as well. There, we're competing with the relationship, the service model that we have, the treasury platform that we can provide.

好的，謝謝你，Feddie。我是Travis。你看，對於我會稱之為消費者存款而言，外部競爭確實仍然激烈。我的意思是，隨著利率某種程度回升，你會在分行與線上公布的報價利率中看到。我只想說，對我們而言，消費者端當然是我們預期存款成長的一部分，但多數仍來自商業端，其中也包含小型企業與企業金融（business banking）。在那裡，我們競爭的是關係、我們的服務模式，以及我們能提供的財資平台。

So obviously, it will always be an element of how you compete for deposits, but it's not the only one. And I think that's what's enabled us to differentiate ourselves from a deposit growth perspective while also driving down costs.

因此，利率當然永遠會是存款競爭的一個要素，但並非唯一要素。我認為這也使我們能在推動存款成長的同時，達到差異化並降低成本。

Great. And just on the Common Equity Tier 1 guide. You mentioned it in your opening remarks, but can you just refresh us on capital priorities and does that CET1 direction mean fewer buybacks or simply more capital generation? Or are you taking into account the Fed moves there? Just wonder if you can talk a little bit more about buybacks relative to the CET1 ratio?

很好。再來關於普通股權一級資本（CET1）指引。你在開場談到過，但能否再幫我們更新一下資本運用的優先順序？以及CET1的走向是否意味著回購會更少，或只是資本生成更多？或者你們是否也把聯準會的動作納入考量？想請你再多談一點回購相對於CET1比率的看法。

Yes, thanks. We've been pretty consistent that we have this range or target range of 10.5% to 11% on CET1, but throughout 2026, we anticipate staying at the higher end of that range. I think one key element, I mean, for us, the number one priority for capital utilization is to support high-quality, well-funded loan growth. And as we've seen kind of good activity in the first-quarter and the pipeline is building well, we anticipate, as we said, that loan growth will trend towards the higher end of our range. We want to be able to support that.

好的，謝謝。我們一直相當一致地表示，我們對CET1有一個區間或目標區間為10.5%到11%，但在整個2026年期間，我們預期會維持在該區間的較高端。我認為其中一個關鍵要素是：對我們而言，資本運用的第一優先是支持高品質、資金來源良好的放款成長。隨著我們在第一季看到不錯的動能、且管線也持續建立，我們預期如同我們所說，放款成長將朝我們區間的高端靠攏。我們希望能夠支持這樣的成長。

So we bought back 4 million shares this quarter in aggregate, it was about $52 million of capital we utilized for the buyback. I would anticipate that pulls back a little bit because as we look at the loan growth opportunities for the next couple of quarters, we want to make sure that we're preserving the capital to support that. So we anticipate remaining active to some degree, but it wouldn't surprise me if it's a little bit less than what the first-quarter was on the buyback.

因此，本季我們合計回購了400萬股，回購動用的資本約為5,200萬美元。我預期這個數字會稍微回落一些，因為當我們觀察未來幾季的放款成長機會時，我們希望確保保留資本以支撐這些成長。因此我們預期仍會在一定程度上保持回購的活躍度，但如果回購規模略低於第一季，我也不會感到意外。

David Chiaverini, Jefferies.

David Chiaverini，Jefferies。

Brooks Dutton on for Dave this morning. With your CRE concentration ratio trending lower to 3.29%, what is the long-term target for this metric? And how does that influence you guys 4% to 6% loan growth for the remainder of 2026?

今天早上由Brooks Dutton代替Dave提問。你們的CRE集中度比率下降至3.29%，這項指標的長期目標是什麼？另外，這會如何影響你們在2026年剩餘期間4%到6%的放款成長？

Yes. I think we were very diligent within the last two-ish years in identifying a certain runoff portfolio really was transactional for us. So they didn't really bring the deposit relationships that we were looking for. So those two or three clients continue to run off, which create capacity for a lot of our loan growth within the organization. I think when we think about absolute getting on 300% as an absolute number is a longer-term priority for us, and we think that we're trending there.

是的。我認為在過去大約兩年內，我們非常謹慎地辨識出一個特定的流失（runoff）投組，對我們而言其實偏交易型。也就是說，它們並沒有帶來我們所尋求的存款關係。因此，那兩到三個客戶仍在持續流失，這也為我們組織內的放款成長創造了許多容量。我們在思考絕對值時，把降到300%作為一個長期優先事項，而我們認為目前正朝那個方向前進。

But there's really very little pressure from an external perspective that we feel that we need to accelerate that. These are good quality loans, but I think maybe just getting the return hurdle that we're looking for. So for us, it really becomes how do we rotate the profitability of the clients from certain under ROI clients into higher ROI clients. And that's really what's driving how we think about the runoff of the free portfolio.

但從外部角度來看，我們並沒有感受到需要加速達成的壓力。這些都是品質良好的貸款，但我想可能只是未能達到我們所要求的報酬門檻。因此對我們而言，關鍵在於如何把客戶的獲利能力，從某些ROI較低的客戶輪轉到ROI較高的客戶。這也正是我們在思考該投組流失（runoff）時的主要驅動因素。

Great. And then just on fee income, there's lower capital markets activity this quarter. Can you just talk about your run rate expectations for 2026 as we progress to the year?

很好。接著關於手續費收入，本季資本市場活動較低。你能談談隨著2026年推進，你們對2026年的常態化（run rate）預期嗎？

Yes, thanks. We did indicate on the fourth-quarter call that fee income in general was about $7 million elevated in a variety of ways. One of that was $4 million or $5 million of elevation from a soft perspective in the fourth-quarter. So that normalized as expected. The $10 million in capital markets in general is a good starting point, and we anticipate that we see growth throughout the rest of the year.

是的，謝謝。我們在第四季電話會議上確實提到，整體手續費收入在多個面向上約有700萬美元的上升。其中有400萬到500萬美元的上升，是第四季從某個角度來看較為一次性的抬升。因此這部分如預期已回到常態。整體而言，資本市場的1,000萬美元是一個不錯的起點，我們預期在今年剩餘期間會看到成長。

Janet Lee, TD Cowen.

Janet Lee，TD Cowen。

For loan growth, is the -- more growth coming from non-transactional CRE and then still pretty robust growth in C&I there. Should we expect the mix -- should we expect more of growth to also come from CRE in the future quarters versus what you expected in the prior quarter? Or how should we think about the mix of loan growth as we head into the rest of 2026?

就放款成長而言，是否更多成長來自非交易型CRE，同時C&I仍維持相當強勁的成長？我們是否應預期未來幾季的成長組合中，CRE占比會比你們上一季預期的更高？或者我們該如何看待2026年剩餘期間的放款成長組合？

Yes. Janet, maybe I'll start, and Gino can add some commentary in terms of what we're seeing in the pipeline. But coming into the year, we had guided to about $2.5 billion of loan growth of which $1 billion was C&I, $1 billion was CRE and $500 million was consumer and resi. Within that $1 billion of CRE, we anticipated a couple of hundred million would be regulatory CRE. So investor in multifamily.

是的，Janet，我先回答，Gino也可以就我們在管線中看到的情況補充一些看法。年初我們指引約25億美元的放款成長，其中10億美元是C&I、10億美元是CRE、5億美元是消費與住宅（resi）。在這10億美元的CRE中，我們預期其中約有2億美元會是監管口徑的CRE，也就是多戶住宅的投資人貸款。

As you saw in the first-quarter, right, that was a slight decline. I would anticipate maybe that we see a little bit of regulatory CRE growth throughout the year, but the majority will remain in kind of owner occupied in C&I with support from the consumer areas as well. So maybe Gino, what you're seeing across the market?

如你在第一季看到的，對吧，這部分略有下降。我預期今年可能會看到一些監管口徑CRE的成長，但大多數仍會集中在自用型（owner occupied）以及C&I，並且也會有消費端的支撐。所以，Gino，你在市場上看到的是什麼？

I'll just add, we continue to invest in new talent and primarily with C&I talent, upmarket C&I business bankers as well that are focused on C&I and deposit-rich businesses. Our pipeline -- C&I pipeline is up $1 billion since the end of the year.

我補充一下，我們持續投資新的人才，主要是C&I人才，也包括更高端市場（upmarket）的C&I商業銀行家，他們同樣聚焦於C&I以及存款較為充裕的企業。我們的管線——C&I管線自年末以來增加了10億美元。

So we expect to see continued C&I growth throughout 2026, both because of the investments we made and because our clients continue to invest. We have relatively robust economies. We're in affluent markets, whether that's Coral Gables, Tampa, Morristown, Manhattan Garden City, all of those markets remain strong and robust in our clients despite the noise out there and some of the headwinds from input costs, our clients continue to remain confident and we continue to invest and we're supporting them.

因此我們預期2026年將持續看到C&I成長，一方面因為我們所做的投資，另一方面也因為客戶持續投資。我們所在的經濟體相對強勁。我們位於富裕市場，不論是Coral Gables、Tampa、Morristown、Manhattan、Garden City，這些市場在客戶層面仍然強勁且具韌性。儘管外界有雜音、投入成本帶來一些逆風，我們的客戶仍保持信心；我們也持續投資並支持他們。

That's helpful. And your credit was very stable this quarter, but your criticized and classified loans were up a little bit, driven by C&I special mentioned loans. Could you provide some color on the trends you're seeing and do you still affect the trajectory of criticized and classified to decline from here? Or should it stabilize over the near term?

這很有幫助。你們本季信用狀況非常穩定，但你們的受關注（criticized）與分類（classified）貸款略有上升，主要由C&I的特別提及（special mention）貸款所帶動。你能提供一些趨勢上的說明嗎？你們仍預期受關注與分類貸款從這裡開始會下降嗎？還是短期內會趨於穩定？

Janet, it's Saeger. The really stabilization of criticized in the first-quarter is just a normal phenomenon of year-end financial collection and some migration. We do anticipate that we will still see a decline in the criticized throughout the year in noting we had a big decline in Q3 and Q4, and we still have an expectation for the year to be down.

Janet，我是Saeger。第一季受關注貸款的穩定，主要是年末財報收集以及部分遷移所造成的正常現象。我們仍預期今年受關注貸款會下降；要注意的是，我們在第三季與第四季已大幅下降，而我們對全年仍維持下降的預期。

David Smith, Truist Securities.

David Smith，Truist Securities。

Can you give us a sense of where new loans are coming on the books today and how spreads have trended over the quarter, given everything that's going on?

你能讓我們了解一下目前新承作貸款主要來自哪些領域？在目前各種情況之下，本季利差走勢如何？

This is Travis. New loan yields declined modestly. I think it was 6.75% last quarter, it was maybe 6.55%, 6.60% this quarter. We're seeing modest spread compression in certain asset classes on the commercial real estate side. I think that led to a little bit more runoff in the regulatory pre-book than maybe we had anticipated coming into the year.

我是Travis。新貸款收益率小幅下降。上季大約是6.75%，本季可能是6.55%到6.60%。我們在商用不動產端的某些資產類別看到溫和的利差壓縮。我認為這導致監管口徑的預先承作（pre-book）流失（runoff）比我們年初預期的稍多一些。

But spreads have remained generally stable in most of our target portfolios. It obviously remains competitive for high-quality customers that we're banking. But I do think we've reached an air pocket from a size perspective, where we're one of very few banks remaining in this size category that can offer all the products and services of a large bank with the high-touch service and quick response and credit underwriting of more community-oriented bank. I think that's playing well for us to be able to grow without necessarily seeing spreads collapse.

但在我們多數目標投組中，利差整體仍大致穩定。對於我們所服務的高品質客戶而言，競爭顯然仍然激烈。不過我確實認為，從規模角度來看，我們已進入一個「空窗期」（air pocket）：在這個規模區間內，能同時提供大型銀行的全套產品與服務、又能提供更偏社區型銀行的高接觸服務、快速回應與授信承作能力的銀行已所剩無幾。我認為這對我們很有利，使我們能在不必然看到利差崩塌的情況下成長。

And did you have the spot deposit rate for March 31?

那你們3月31日的即期存款利率是多少？

Yes. Interest-bearing spot deposit cost was 2.95% million versus 3.02% in December, all in was 2.26% spot deposit cost versus 2.32% at December 31, so down 6 basis points from the end of December to the end of March.

是的。計息存款的即期存款成本為2.95%，相較12月為3.02%；全部（all-in）的即期存款成本為2.26%，相較12月31日為2.32%。因此從12月底到3月底下降了6個基點。

Anthony Elian, JPMorgan.

Anthony Elian，JPMorgan。

This is Mike Pietrini on for Tony. So I guess I'll start on NIM. I guess, how are you guys thinking about NIM trending for the rest of the year? I know you guys mentioned coming into the year that the 3.30% mark was sort of what you expected? How do you guys see that trending?

我是Mike Pietrini，代替Tony提問。我先從NIM開始。你們如何看待今年剩餘期間NIM的走勢？我知道你們年初提到3.30%大致是你們的預期水準？你們怎麼看接下來的趨勢？

Yes. So coming into the year, we had anticipated a slight reduction in margin in the first-quarter and then building up to that 3.30% level by the fourth-quarter. The reality is we posted a better starting point. And so I would anticipate that there's some upside to that 3.30% fourth-quarter '26 target that we've laid out. Again, I think the funding profile is better at 3.31% than we had maybe anticipated.

是的。年初我們預期第一季淨利差會小幅下滑，之後到第四季回升至3.30%的水準。實際上，我們的起點比預期更好。因此我預期，我們所提出的2026年第四季3.30%目標可能有一些上行空間。再說一次，我認為資金來源結構在3.31%這個水準上，比我們原先預期的更好。

The interest rate backdrop remains supportive of the margin expansion. And we still have the structural tailwinds that we outlined on the net interest income side of the deck, showing the fixed rate asset repricing and then the fixed rate liability repricing as well. So when you add it all up, I think we feel better about the margin guide that maybe we saw coming into the year, even though coming into the year was strong as well.

利率環境仍有利於淨利差擴張。我們也仍具備在簡報中所提到的結構性順風，包含固定利率資產的重訂價，以及固定利率負債的重訂價。綜合來看，我認為我們對淨利差指引的感受比年初更好，儘管年初的狀況本身也已相當強勁。

Great. And then on loan growth, now you guys sort of guiding to the mid- to high end of that range, the 4% to 6% range. I guess, what categories do you feel more encouraged on now than you did before? Or just any color on the expected growth trajectory of any of the different categories over the rest of the year? That would be great.

很好。接著談到貸款成長，你們現在似乎指引在該區間的中到高端，也就是 4% 到 6% 的區間。我想問的是，現在哪些類別相較於之前讓你們更有信心？或者能否就今年剩餘時間各不同類別的預期成長軌跡提供一些補充說明？那就太好了。

Our pipeline remains very robust. It's basically double what it was a year ago. And it is primarily concentrated in C&I and health care. We've got a very terrific health care franchise with experience -- very experienced people. And that business continues to grow.

我們的案源管線仍然非常強勁，基本上是去年同期的兩倍。而且主要集中在工商業貸款（C&I）與醫療保健。我們在醫療保健領域有非常出色的業務平台，團隊經驗——非常資深的人才。而這項業務持續成長。

We do have a reasonable amount of CRE demand that is offset by the runoff of the non-regulatory book. And so we expect -- and also its robust growth across all of our geographies, whether it is Florida, New York, New Jersey. And even in our growth markets, we're seeing good growth in Illinois and L.A., et cetera. So we expect a very robust originations here.

我們確實也看到相當程度的商用不動產（CRE）需求，但會被非監管投資組合的自然到期／縮減所抵銷。因此我們預期——同時，我們在所有地理區域都呈現強勁成長，不論是佛羅里達、紐約、紐澤西。甚至在我們的成長市場，我們也在伊利諾伊、洛杉磯等地看到良好成長。因此我們預期這裡的承作量會非常強勁。

Matthew Breese, Stephens Inc.

Matthew Breese，Stephens Inc.。

Maybe a quick one on expenses first, just given some of the moving pieces, severance, et cetera, look at a starting place for the second-quarter on salary expenses is $150 million the right place to be, any other moving parts there?

先快速問一個費用的問題，考量到一些變動因素，資遣費等等。以第二季薪資費用 $1.5 億作為起點是否合適？那裡還有其他變動因素嗎？

Matt, I think that's right. And I would just say, so the first-quarter payroll tax impact was about a $7 million headwind. That declined by about $4 million in the second-quarter. At the same time, our merit bonuses only went into place kind of mid-March, so there is no real impact from that in the first-quarter. So those two things effectively balance out.

Matt，我認為是的。我補充一下：第一季薪資稅的影響大約是 $700 萬的逆風；到第二季下降了約 $400 萬。同時，我們的績效調薪／獎金大概是 3 月中才開始生效，所以第一季其實沒有實質影響。因此這兩件事基本上互相抵銷。

If you take the severance away from the compensation line, I think that's a good starting point. The only element and this moves around quarter-to-quarter is we did see some higher insurance costs in that line in the first-quarter. So the -- it's possible that we could outperform from that perspective, but I don't think that would be overly material.

如果把資遣費從薪酬費用項下扣除，我認為那是一個不錯的起點。唯一會在季度間波動的因素是：我們在第一季看到該項下的保險成本較高。因此——從這個角度看，我們有可能表現得更好，但我不認為會非常重大。

Okay. And one thing I haven't heard a lot about what I've heard a lot of peers talk about is just the extent you're seeing payoffs and prepayments. First, maybe just your thoughts on that? Are you seeing that as well but be able to offset it? And then secondly, is the prepayment penalty income going into the NIM?

好的。還有一點，我沒有聽到你們談很多，但我聽到很多同業在談，就是你們看到的清償與提前還款的程度。首先，想請教你們對此的看法？你們也有看到這種情況嗎、但能夠抵銷掉？其次，提前還款違約金收入是否會計入 NIM？

And I would just love to get some sense for how that's trended and if it's expensive? And are we modelling too much of it right now and just wanted your thoughts there.

另外也很想了解這個趨勢如何、是否成本很高？以及我們現在模型是不是把它估得太多了，想聽聽你們的看法。

Yes. I don't think -- first of all, it does go through our NII, although it's not an overly material number. Prepayments this quarter declined to about $1.2 billion. They've been running at around $1.4 billion for the last couple of quarters. So we saw a slight decline in prepayment activity, but it's been fairly consistent when you look back over five or eight quarters or so. So I don't think it's been a material moving piece in terms of balances for the NII.

是的。首先，我不認為——第一，它確實會反映在我們的淨利息收入（NII）中，但金額並不算特別重大。本季提前還款降至約 $12 億；過去幾季大約在 $14 億左右。因此我們看到提前還款活動略有下降，但回頭看過去大約五到八季，其實相當一致。所以我不認為它在 NII 的餘額面上是一個重大的變動因素。

Okay. And can you remind us of what the accretable yield that's flowing through the margin is?

好的。那可以提醒我們一下，流入利差的可攤提收益（accretable yield）是多少嗎？

Yes, it's like $10 million this quarter, which has been consistent. It's about $4 million on the security side and $6 million on the loan side.

可以，本季大約是 $1,000 萬，且一直都很一致。其中約 $400 萬來自證券端，約 $600 萬來自貸款端。

Okay. And I think that was what it was last quarter two?

好的。我想上季也是這個水準對嗎？

Yes, this quarter -- excuse me, yes, it was $9.5 million this quarter. It was $10.9 million last quarter, so a slight decline.

是的，本季——不好意思，是的，本季是 $950 萬；上季是 $1,090 萬，所以略有下降。

Okay. And then last one for me, just on asset quality. The big areas of concern for the industry, I would love your thoughts on NDFI, not that you have a ton of it and then office commercial real estate, just of kind of color and if you're seeing any sort of green shoots there or anything that's keeping you up at night? That's all I had.

好的。那我最後一題，關於資產品質。產業最受關注的兩個領域，我想聽聽你們對 NDFI 的看法（雖然你們部位不大），以及辦公室商用不動產。想請你們提供一些補充說明，是否看到任何好轉跡象，或有沒有什麼讓你們夜不能寐的？我就這些。

Matt, it's Mark Saeger. NDFI has never been a big portion of our portfolio. We have about 2.6% of the portfolio in NDFI compared to 7% for our peers. That number for us also, we mentioned in the past. We had a focus on capital call facilities out of our fund finance group.

Matt，我是 Mark Saeger。NDFI 從來不是我們投資組合中的大宗。我們大約有 2.6% 的投資組合在 NDFI，相較同業約 7%。我們過去也提過，對我們而言，這部分主要聚焦在我們基金融資團隊所做的資本催繳融資（capital call facilities）。

Those are exceptionally well structured to entities with a strong history and a very strong institutional LP base. So we view that as safe lending. But yes, as you mentioned, it's a small part of our portfolio. As it relates to the office portfolio, we have that breakout in our deck. We continue to be very granular in that space, diversified by geography more suburban than urban.

這些交易的結構非常完善，對象是具備良好歷史紀錄、且擁有非常強的機構型有限合夥人（LP）基礎的實體。因此我們認為這是安全的放款。不過如你所說，這確實只是我們投資組合的一小部分。至於辦公室投資組合，我們在簡報中有拆分揭露。我們在該領域持續做非常細緻的管理，並依地理區域分散，郊區比市中心更多。

And we definitely are seeing more rational transactions happen in the office space. If it hasn't hit bottom in all markets, it's close to bottom, and we're seeing new lease-up activity, a reduction in subleasing in the majority of our markets. So not actively growing that portfolio, but our concerns on that portfolio have definitely abated.

而且我們確實看到辦公室市場出現更理性的交易。如果不是所有市場都已觸底，也已接近底部；我們也看到新的出租（lease-up）活動，以及在我們多數市場中，轉租（subleasing）有所減少。因此我們沒有積極擴張該投資組合，但我們對該投資組合的擔憂確實已明顯緩解。

It's Gino too. I will only add that in the last two quarters has been record leasing in New York City. And so at record rents, especially your Class A properties, you can see upwards of over $200 a square foot in rent. So some of the concerns about Montani and other things that are happening. Just not materializing with corporations in their leasing strategies at least.

我也補充一下，我是 Gino。過去兩季紐約市的租賃量創下紀錄，而且租金也創新高，特別是 A 級物件，你可以看到租金上看每平方英尺超過 $200。因此，對於 Montani 以及其他正在發生的事情的一些擔憂，至少從企業的租賃策略來看，並沒有實質發生。

(Operator Instructions)

（接線員指示）

Christopher McGratty, KBW.

Christopher McGratty，KBW。

Travis, going back to the capital, just to push a little bit on the buyback. I mean your ROE going in the right direction, generating more capital. Can you do both the high end of growth and buybacks or maybe it's more of a back half of the year as you kind of talk about the near-term loan growth. I guess what's the hesitation especially with the Basel III proposal?

Travis，回到資本議題，我想再追問一下庫藏股。我是說，你們的 ROE 正在往正確方向走、也在產生更多資本。你們能否同時做到成長指引的高端與回購？或者回購會比較偏向下半年，因為你們談到短期貸款成長。我想問的是，尤其在巴塞爾 III 提案之下，顧慮點是什麼？

Yes. I don't think that there's any hesitation. I just think we have a very robust pipeline, and we want to make sure that we're well positioned to support that loan growth, Chris. So again, we bought back $50 million of stock in the first-quarter, something in that $40-ish million, $40 million to $50 million range. I still think is reasonable.

是的。我不認為有任何顧慮。我只是認為我們的案源管線非常強勁，我們希望確保自己處於良好位置來支持那樣的貸款成長，Chris。所以再說一次，我們在第一季回購了 $5,000 萬股票，大概在 $4,000 多萬、$4,000 萬到 $5,000 萬的區間，我仍然認為是合理的。

The average price we bought it back was below where the market is today. So that's another element that plays into it. We will remain active in the buyback. I just indicated that I think it will be a little bit lighter than the first-quarter.

我們回購的平均價格低於今天的市場價格，這也是其中一個考量因素。我們會持續進行回購。我剛才也提到，我認為回購力度會比第一季稍微輕一些。

Okay. That's better. And then Ira, I didn't hear M&A or strategic you mentioned at all, maybe a view there, if there was a change.

好的，這樣更清楚了。然後 Ira，我沒有聽到你提到任何併購（M&A）或策略性事項，想請問你對此的看法，是否有任何改變？

Yes. I mean from an M&A perspective, I don't think anything has really changed. I think from a historical perspective, it's been important for us to remain a shareholder friendly and to do what's in the best interest of the shareholders. And I don't think that's ever going to change here.

是的。就併購角度而言，我不認為有任何事情真的改變。我認為從歷史角度來看，對我們而言，維持對股東友善、並做出符合股東最佳利益的決策一直很重要，而我不認為這點在這裡會有任何改變。

And I'm currently showing no further questions at this time. I would now like to hand the conference back over to Ira Robbins for closing remarks.

目前顯示沒有其他問題。我現在把會議交回給 Ira Robbins 作結語。

I just want to thank everyone for the interest and look forward to speaking to you next quarter. Thank you.

我只想感謝各位的關注，並期待在下個季度再與各位交流。謝謝。

This concludes today's conference. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位參與。您現在可以掛線。