Pathward Financial, Inc.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by and welcome to PathWords Financial's first quarter fiscal year 2023 investor conference call. During the presentation, all participants will be in listening only mode following the prepared remarks. We will conduct a question and answer session. As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference call over to Justin Schimpf, Vice President of Investor Relations and Financial reporting. Please go ahead.

Thank you, Operator, and welcome. Password Financial's CEO, Brett Farr, CFO, Glenn Herrick, and Deputy CFO, Sonya Tyson, will discuss our operating and financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2023, after which we will take your questions. Additional information, including the earnings release and a supplemental investor presentation, may be found on our website at PasswordFinancial.com. As a reminder, our comments may include forward-looking statements, including with respect to anticipated results for future periods. Those statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual and anticipated results to differ. The company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement. Please refer to the cautionary language in the earnings release, investor presentation, and in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent filings, for additional information covering factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Additionally, today we will be discussing certain non-GAAP financial measures on this conference call. References to non-GAAP measures are only provided to assist you in understanding the company's results and performance trends. Reconciliations for such non-GAAP measures are included within the appendix of the investor presentation. Now, let me turn the call over to Brett Farr, our CEO.

Thank you, everyone, for joining Pathwork Financial's first quarter 2023 earnings call. The company performed well during the quarter. Core net income, excluding the impacts of rebranding, was $23.2 million compared to $24 million in the prior year, and core earnings per share of 81 cents was up 4% compared to 78 cents per share in the prior year quarter. Our continued focus on our key strategic pillars of asset optimization, deposit optimization, and operational simplification helped drive further expansion of our net interest margin, which rose over 100 basis points to 5.62% for the first fiscal quarter compared to 4.59% in the prior year quarter. Our strategy also enabled us to achieve return on average assets and return on average tangible equity that are amongst the top in the industry. Our commercial finance portfolio grew 7% year over year and totaled $3 billion a quarter in. Total loans and leases on December 31st were $3.5 billion, a decrease of 5% from $3.7 billion in the prior year. The year-over-year decline in total loans and leases reflects the sale of the student loan portfolio, timing of tax season loans, and a few relationship paydowns in our warehouse lending portfolio. Credit quality across the portfolio remains strong, as non-performing loans of 1.16% were the same as a year ago. As we head into a potential recessionary environment, we remain confident in our active collateral management and the quality of our loan portfolio. On the liability side of the balance sheet, the company continues to demonstrate its proficiency in managing excess deposits by storing them at our program banks. In the first quarter, off-balance sheet deposits averaged $1.4 billion, earning revenue roughly equivalent to the federal fund's effective rate. In addition to generating revenue, these excess deposits also serve as a readily available source of liquidity. As of December 31st, we had $2.2 billion of customer deposits stored off balance sheet with program banks, a level that is seasonably elevated due to holiday-related gift cards and other products. As we have indicated during the two previous quarters, the landscape of the banking as a service market is changing. While we continue to see fewer startups receive funding, our legacy partners are launching new programs and using our services to attract new customers. With our diversified clientele and our long history and experience in banking as a service, we steer clear of the current turmoil experienced by others in the industry. We believe our strong risk and compliance capabilities continue to serve us well during this time of industry transition. Regarding our rebrand, I'm happy to announce the company completed the remaining efforts during the quarter. Consequently, we received the final $10 million of the original $60 million sale associated with our meta trademarks. We are pleased to be serving our customers under our new password name, which has been well received by our customers and partners. We look forward to building upon the brand value it provides. Looking ahead to the remainder of fiscal year 2023, We believe our unique business model allows us to benefit from rising rates, positioning us well to continue delivering solid financial results. Consequently, we've increased our fiscal year 2023 GAAP earnings guidance range, which we now expect to be between $5.55 and $5.95 per share. Finally, we are well prepared for tax season, which is kicking off in the second fiscal quarter. We have a long history of operational success, are a leader in supporting the independent tax industry, and serve a major franchise in the business. Our historical experience and operational excellence position us to succeed in the unique economic environment of this year's season. We look forward to sharing more on our next earnings call. Now, let me turn the call over to our Chief Financial Officer, Glenn Herrick, who will provide additional detail on the quarter's financials.