PORTERVILLE, Calif.,
Oct. 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Sierra
Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR), the holding company of Bank of the Sierra,
announced today the completion of its acquisition of OCB Bancorp
(OTC:OJCB), the parent of Ojai Community Bank, headquartered in
Ventura County, through the merger
of OCB Bancorp with and into Sierra Bancorp. Pursuant to the
terms of the acquisition agreement dated April 24, 2017, Ojai Bancorp shareholders
received aggregate merger consideration of approximately
$35.8 million, primarily in the form
of shares of Sierra Bancorp common stock based on a volume-weighted
average price of $25.20 per Sierra
Bancorp share. The exchange ratio for the transaction is 0.55511
shares of Sierra Bancorp stock for each share of OCB Bancorp stock.
Immediately following the acquisition, OCB Bancorp's wholly-owned
subsidiary, Ojai Community Bank, was merged into Bank of the
Sierra. Bank of the Sierra now has $2.3 billion in assets and operates 39
full-service branches, as well as an online branch, real estate
industries center, an agricultural credit center, and an SBA
center.
This acquisition serves as an excellent opportunity for
customers, employees, and shareholders of OCB to take advantage of
a wider variety of products and services as well as the convenience
of Bank of the Sierra's growing network of branches and ATMs
throughout Central and Southern
California.
Kevin McPhaill, President and CEO
of Bank of the Sierra expressed his enthusiasm, "We are excited to
welcome the employees and customers of Ojai Community Bank, and
each of its divisions, to Bank of the Sierra. Many thanks to the
teams from both banks who have worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth
transition for our new customers in Ventura and Santa
Barbara counties."
Advisors
Sierra Bancorp was advised in the transaction
by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, A Stifel Company, as
financial advisor and King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano, LLP as legal
counsel. OCB Bancorp was advised in the transaction by FIG
Partners, LLC, as financial advisor and Loren P Hansen, APC as
legal counsel.
About Sierra Bancorp & Bank of the Sierra
Sierra
Bancorp is the holding company for Bank of the Sierra
(www.bankofthesierra.com), which is in its 40th year of
operations and is the largest independent bank headquartered in the
South San Joaquin Valley. Bank of
the Sierra is a community-centric regional bank, which offers a
full range of retail and commercial banking services via 39
full-service branches located throughout California's South
San Joaquin Valley and neighboring communities, on the
Central Coast, and in Southern
California locations including the Santa Clara Valley. We
also maintain an online branch, and provide specialized lending
services through an agricultural credit center, a real estate
industries center, and an SBA center.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this
release, other than those concerning historical financial
information, may be considered forward-looking statements, which
speak only as of the date of this release and are based on current
expectations and involve a number of assumptions. These include
statements as to the anticipated benefits of the merger, including
future financial and operating results, cost savings and enhanced
revenues that may be realized from the merger as well as other
statements of expectations regarding the merger and any other
statements regarding future results or expectations. Sierra Bancorp
intends such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe
harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including
this statement for purposes of these safe harbor provisions. The
ability of Sierra Bancorp to predict results or the actual effect
of future plans or strategies is inherently uncertain. Factors
which could have a material effect on the operations and future
prospects of Sierra Bancorp include, but are not limited to: the
businesses of Bank of the Sierra and the former Ojai Community Bank
may not be integrated successfully or such integration may be more
difficult, time-consuming or costly than expected; expected revenue
synergies and cost savings from the merger may not be fully
realized or realized within the expected time frame; revenues
following the merger may be lower than expected; customer and
employee relationships and business operations may be disrupted by
the merger; changes in interest rates, general economic conditions,
legislative/regulatory changes, monetary and fiscal policies of the
U.S. government, including policies of the U.S. Treasury and the
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve; the quality and
composition of the loan and securities portfolios; demand for loan
products; deposit flows; competition; demand for financial services
in Bank of Sierra's market areas; its implementation of new
technologies; its ability to develop and maintain secure and
reliable electronic systems; and accounting principles, policies,
and guidelines, and other risk factors detailed from time to time.
Sierra Bancorp undertakes no obligation to update or clarify these
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
View original content with
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sierra-bancorp-completes-acquisition-of-ocb-bancorp-parent-of-ojai-community-bank-300528596.html
SOURCE Sierra Bancorp