Home BancShares, Inc. Beefs Up Marine Business Through Loan Portfolio Acquisition
February 19 2020 - 5:15PM
Home BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ: HOMB) (“Home” or the “Company”),
parent company of Centennial Bank, (“Centennial”), today announced
the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire LH-Finance, the
marine lending division of Bridgeport, Connecticut based People’s
United Bank, N.A. (“People’s United”). LH-Finance, which was
acquired by People’s United as part of its recent acquisition of
United Financial Bancorp, the holding company for United Bank,
provides retail financing to end customers and wholesale financing
to boat dealers. Under the terms of the agreement, Centennial Bank
will acquire approximately $405 million in LH-Finance loan balances
from People’s United.
Upon completion of the acquisition, this
portfolio of loans will be housed within Centennial’s Shore Premier
Finance division (“Shore”). Shore is a $517 million specialized
marine lending division of Centennial Bank with a national platform
for floor plan and retail loans. Shore will be responsible for
servicing the acquired loan portfolio and originating new loan
production.
“We have just returned from the Miami boat show,
working with our Shore Premier Finance team,” said John Allison,
Home’s Chairman, CEO and President. “The excitement and enthusiasm
from manufacturers and dealers is very contagious. Looks like
perfect timing for HOMB.” “The consolidation of LH-Finance into
Shore Premier Finance is a natural evolution of two marine finance
specialty teams that share common roots,” added Shore Premier
Finance President John Marshall. “Further, this is an exciting
opportunity to leverage scale and our unique business model to
provide even greater service to our manufacturer, wholesale dealer,
and retail customers.”
The acquisition is expected to close in the
first quarter of 2020 and is subject to certain customary closing
conditions set forth in the purchase agreement. In connection with
this acquisition, Centennial has notified the Arkansas State Bank
Department of its plans to establish a new loan production office
in Baltimore, Maryland.
General
Home BancShares, Inc. is a bank holding company,
headquartered in Conway, Arkansas. Its wholly-owned subsidiary,
Centennial Bank, provides a broad range of commercial and retail
banking plus related financial services to businesses, real estate
developers, investors, individuals and municipalities. Centennial
Bank has branch locations in Arkansas, Florida, South Alabama and
New York City. The Company’s common stock is traded through the
NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “HOMB.”
This release contains forward-looking statements
which include, but are not limited to, statements about the
benefits of the Company’s acquisition of LH-Finance, including the
Company’s plans, expectations, goals and outlook for the future.
Statements in this press release that are not historical facts
should be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Forward-looking statements of this type speak only as of the date
of this news release. By nature, forward-looking statements involve
inherent risk and uncertainties. Various factors could cause actual
results to differ materially from those contemplated by the
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, (i) the
possibility that the acquisition does not close when expected or at
all because required conditions to closing are not received or
satisfied on a timely basis or at all; (ii) the risk that the
benefits from the transaction may not be fully realized or may take
longer to realize than expected, including as a result of any delay
in or failure to receive regulatory approval of the proposed loan
production office through which LH-Finance will be operated,
changes in general economic and market conditions, interest and
exchange rates, monetary policy, laws and regulations and their
enforcement, and the degree of competition in the geographic and
business areas in which the Company and LH-Finance operate; (iii)
the ability to promptly and effectively integrate the business of
LH-Finance into the Company; (iv) the reaction to the transaction
of the Company’s and LH-Finance’s customers, employees and
counterparties; and (v) diversion of management time on
acquisition-related issues. Additional factors that might affect
the Company’s financial results are described in reports the
Company files with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
“SEC”), including those factors set forth in its Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 filed with the SEC
on February 26, 2019.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
Home BancShares,
Inc.
Donna
Townsell
Investor Relations Officer
(501) 328-4625
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