Mercantile Bank Corporation

Good morning and welcome to the Mercantile Bank Corporation third quarter 2023 earnings results conference call. All participants will be in a listen-only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press star then one on a touchtone phone. To withdraw your question, please press star then two. Please note, this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Zach Mukewa, Lambert Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining Markentel Bank Corporation's conference call and webcast to discuss the company's financial results for the third quarter. Joining me today are members of Markentel's management team, including Bob Kaminsky, President and Chief Executive Officer of Chuck Christmas, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Ray Reisman, Chief Operating Officer and President of the bank. We'll begin the call with the management's prepared remarks and presentation to review the quarter's results, then open the call to questions. Before turning the call over to management, it is my responsibility to inform you that this call may involve certain forward-looking statements, such as projections of revenue, earnings, and capital structure, as well as statements on the plans and objectives of the company's business. The company's actual results could differ materially from any forward-looking statements made today due to the factors described in the company's letter of securities and exchange commission's filings. The company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made during the call. If anyone does not already have a copy of the third quarter 2023 press release and presentation deck issued by Markenthal today, You can access it at the company's website at www.markbank.com. At this time, I'd like to turn the call over to Mercantile's President and Chief Executive Officer, Bob Kaminski. Bob?

Thank you, Zach, and thanks to all of you for joining us on the conference call today. This morning, Mercantile released its earnings report for the third quarter And as one can see, our company carried the momentum of the outstanding work done as we passed the midpoint of the year into the second half of 2023. During the third quarter, Mercantile produced earnings of $1.30 per share and revenues of $58.2 million. For the year to date, 2023, our company has produced earnings of $3.89 per share on revenues of $168.7 million. This morning, we also announced the cash dividend of $0.34 per share, payable on December 13, 2023. Headline of the quarter was exceedingly solid performance in several metrics, most notably continued strength in net interest margin, reflecting an appropriately structured balance sheet. Additionally, Mercantile exhibited ongoing success in the performance of its loan book as reflected in the asset quality numbers, well-managed expense control as demonstrated in its efficiency ratio, consistently robust levels of capital, and continued success in core local deposit growth. Ray and Chuck will provide more details on our financial performance shortly. The strong performance we have demonstrated is only possible through the great work of the Mercantile team. As we approach the 26th anniversary of our company's founding, the impetus that drove the formation of Mercantile still holds true today. Our team consists of an entrepreneurial group of bankers who care deeply about our customers and communities with a focus on assisting clients in reaching their financial goals and making our communities better places for all of us to live and work. At the centerpiece of our existence is the desire to forge deep, meaningful, mutually beneficial, and lasting relationships with our customers. It is through these relationships that we are able to add value oftentimes as a trusted advisor, and help craft a suite of financial solutions to meet their needs. We remain pleased with the solid fundamentals, which also reflect the quality of the client base with whom we engage. While we continue to enjoy numerous opportunities for growth and expansion, we believe the current environment calls more than ever for a disciplined approach to growth and selectively partaking in opportunities which accommodate our relationship banking philosophy. The Michigan economy continued to operate in steady fashion during the third quarter, with unemployment rates, employment, and economic activity continuing similarly to what we have seen in previous quarters in 2023. Potential headwinds caused from the actions by the FOMC raising rates to lower inflation, labor issues in the auto industry, continued dysfunction by the federal government, and new violence in the Middle East continue to create uncertainty, however. Finally, Mercantile announced my plans to retire on June 1st, 2024, and that my colleague Ray Reisman will succeed me as president and CEO at that time. So I still have another seven months at the helm of our company. The process has already begun, so the seamless transition will take place for our customers, employees, and shareholders. Those are my prepared remarks. I'll now pass the microphone over to Ray, then to Chuck.