USCB Financial Holdings, Inc.

Good day and welcome to the USCB Financial Holdings, Inc. Quarter 2, 2026 Earnings Conference Call. All participants will be in 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 touch-tone 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 Luis de la Aguilera, President and CEO. Please go ahead.

Good morning, and thank you for joining us for the USCB Financial Holdings Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. I'm Luis de la Aguilera, Chairman, President, and CEO of USCB Financial Holdings. Joining me today are Rob Anderson, our Chief Financial Officer, and Sergio Garrido, our chief credit officer. Rob will walk you through our financial results in detail and Sergio will review credit quality. I'm very pleased to report another strong quarter, one that marks an important milestone for our company as we surpassed 3 billion in total assets, driven by record loan production, meaningful margin expansion, and continued pristine credit quality. For the quarter ended June 3rd, 2026, the company generated net income of 9.1 million were 49 cents per diluted share compared to 40 cents per diluted share in the second quarter of last year, a 22.5% increase year over year. Profitability metrics remain best in class with ROA of 1.26, ROAE of 15.9%, and an efficiency ratio that improved to 49.97%, below 50% for the first time and down from 52.34% in the first quarter. At a high level, total assets surpassed $3 billion, up 11% year over year. Loans grew to $2.3 billion, up 9.9% year over year, driven by record new loan fundings of $27.2 million, a 14.6% annualized increase over the prior quarter. Deposits reached $2.5 billion, up 5% year over year, with average DDA growing more than 32% annualized over the first quarter. Net interest margin expanded to 3.49, up from 3.27 for the first quarter, reflecting the earnings power of a growing loan book and the disciplined funding costs. Loan growth was broad-based across our C&I, commercial real estate, correspondent banking, and consumer lending portfolios. Second quarter loan production continued to be diversified along broad asset classes, with 42% of total loan production classified as commercial real estate and 58% as non-CRE. Our concerted focus on diversifying the loan portfolio is evident in the bank's loan composition trend, which shows a steady decline in commercial real estate concentration from 63% in 2020 to 57% by mid-2026. Importantly, this growth has not come at the expense of credit quality. Non-performing loans remain exceptionally low at 0.09% of total loans and net charge-offs were a nominal .05% for the quarter. Our deposit-focused business verticals, association banking, our private client group, and correspondent banking represent approximately 30% of total deposits, underscoring the strength and diversification of our funding franchise. As I step back and review Q2, I see a milestone quarter for USCB, the kind of quarter that validates the strategy we have been executing consistently since recapitalization. Crossing $3 billion in assets is more than a number. It reflects years of disciplined, relationship-driven growth and one of the most attractive banking markets in the country. South Florida continues to attract capital, talent, and business formation at a pace that most markets can only envy, and we are exceptionally well positioned to serve that ecosystem. From a financial performance standpoint, three themes of the quarter speak for themselves. We crossed the $3 billion. We delivered net interest margin approaching 3.5%, and we generated record loan production, all while maintaining pristine quality and an efficiency ratio below 50%. Our branch-light, relationship-intensive model, combined with our specialized deposit verticals, give us a funding advantage that is difficult to replicate. Our operating performance reflects our ongoing strategic decisions to invest in people, process, and products, leveraging technology to deliver best-in-class service as we continue to refine our delivery platforms. To this end, we operate an efficient branch light business model, which over the past years has been optimally repositioned from 18 branches to nine with the recently announced scheduled closure of Miami Lakes Branch later this year. Last quarter, we announced the launch of a new lending team headquartered in our main office. and focus on developing the three contiguous municipalities of Doral, Medley and Hialeah. Initially, the team commenced operating with a senior team leader, two business development officers and a commercially focused business lender. Two additional lenders are in the process of being hired in the third quarter. Similarly, in Q2, we launched a new deposit aggregating initiative focused on supporting 1031 exchange real estate transactions. In partnership with an experienced Florida-based qualified intermediary, U.S. Century will serve as a depository bank for these real estate transactions, helping clients plan when selling and reinvesting in real estate. This new value-added service is initially being marketed internally to transactional law firms, CPAs, and title companies, quickly generating $22 million in deposits since launch. We believe our differentiated relationship banking model combined with the attractive demographic and Economic Trends in South Florida position us well to continue growing both loans and core deposits while maintaining disciplined risk management. These are not isolated results. They are the products of consistent execution by a very talented team and one of the strongest markets in the country. The Miami-Dade Tri-County MSA remains exceptionally resilient because it continues to attract both people and capital at a pace few major U.S. markets can match. Florida's population reached approximately 23.7 million residents by mid-2026, grown by roughly 329,000 people annually, with virtually all growth coming from net migration rather than natural population increases. While some residents have migrated from Miami-Dade to more affordable areas within Florida, the county continues to benefit from substantial inflows of international residents, entrepreneurs, investors, and high-income households were drawn to its unique position as a financial and commercial gateway to Latin America. The economic strength of Miami-Dade is also reflected in its labor market, housing market, and ongoing development activity. Unemployment remains exceptionally low at 2.6%, signaling near full employment across the labor force. At the same time, the medium single-family home price remains between approximately 680,000 to 700,000, while the average home values exceeded 1.3 million, demonstrated significant household wealth and collateral strength. Residential investment remains robust as well. With approximately 36,300 multifamily units in the South Florida development pipeline, much of it concentrated in and around Miami's urban core, supporting construction employment, consumer spending, and long-term housing supply. Perhaps The most compelling from a banking perspective is Miami-Dade's emergence as one of the nation's fastest-growing corporate and financial centers. More than 74 major national and international companies relocated headquarters to Florida between 2020 and 2025, with South Florida capturing a significant share of that growth. With major firms relocating such as Citadel, JPMorgan, Amazon, Blackstone, and Microsoft Latin America, As a matter of fact, in late 2024, FIFA relocated its legal compliance division to the same building where U.S. Century has, or Coral Gables Banking Center. Similarly, FC Barcelona has relocated significant operations to Miami, and a growing number of technology, private equity, and financial services companies have expanded their Miami presence. Combined with Port Miami's throughput of more than a million containers annually, Miami-Dade continues to generate strong demand for commercial lending, Trade Finance, Treasury Management, Owner-Occupied Real Estate Financing, and Wealth Management Services. Taken together, low unemployment, substantial residential development, corporate relocations, population growth, and expanding international trade provide a powerful and sustainable foundation for both Miami-Dade economy and the banking industry it serves. With that overview, I'll now turn the call over to Rob to review the financial results in greater detail.

Thank you, Lou, and good morning, everyone. Looking at pages 6 and 7, you will see an excellent quarter for Team USCB, and notably, a quarter that will power earnings in the back half of 2026. First, total assets surpassed $3 billion. Average loans grew 15% annualized from the prior quarter. This was at the higher end of our stage of guidance, but it was powered by record new loan production. The strong loan growth drove an additional $1.3 million in provision expense, which weighed on current quarter earnings because the provision is recognized upfront, while the earnings benefit from the new loans will be more fully realized in Q3. Net interest income rose up to $24.4 million, up $2.3 million, or 42.6% annualized from the prior quarter. Net interest margin expanded 22 basis points to 3.49%. Credit remained pristine with a very small charge-off. Expenses remained controlled with the efficiency ratio just below 50%. Taxes are higher in the second quarter due to changes in our deferred tax inventory, including utilization of our current net operating loss. Year-to-date, the tax rate is 24%, and we project a 25% rate for the remainder of the year. And while we booked a return on average asset of 1.26%, the headline metric for this quarter is the pre-tax, pre-provision return on average assets of 1.93%. In fact, pre-tax, pre-provision income was just under $14 million, and that was up 47.9% annualized over the prior quarter. Return on average equity was 15.9%. Diluted earnings per share was 49 cents, up 22.5% over the prior year. Tangible book value per share increased to $12.64%, up 3.35% over the prior quarter. And with that overview, let's go to deposits on the next page. Average deposits for the quarter totaled approximately $2.5 billion, an increase of $61.9 million, or 10.2% annualized over the first quarter, and up $198 million, or 8.7% year over year. The real story this quarter was the quality of our funding mix. Average non-interest-bearing DDA increased $47.4 million, or 32.5% annualized, pushing average DDA above the $600 million threshold. This mixed shift was a key driver in bringing our total deposit cost down four basis points to 2.16%, a 30 basis point improvement year over year. On an end-of-period basis, deposits were modestly lower relative to the prior quarter. This was a deliberate strategic decision. We actively exited brokered CDs and other high-cost, non-relationship deposits from the balance sheet, replacing that funding with lower-cost FHLB advances. In a disciplined rate environment, we'd rather fund the balance sheet with wholesale advances at attractive rates than retain expensive deposits that don't carry the relationship depth and stability of our core franchise. This is exactly the kind of funding optimization we will continue to execute to maintain or improve profitability. Let's move on to the loan portfolio. On an average basis, loans increased $81.2 million quarter-over-quarter, 15% annualized, and grew $211 million, or 9.8%, year-over-year. Importantly, loan yield increased to 6.20%, up from 6.11% in the first quarter. Driven by full quarter impact of prior quarter originations and new loans added during the period, this is the earnings normalization we discussed last quarter beginning to materialize. Turning to new loan production, we had a record quarter, $272 million in new loan production, and consistent with prior patterns, the new loan closings were weighted to the back half of the quarter, with June accounting for $116 million, or 42.6% of total production. Correspondent banking loans represented $83 million, or 30.6% of quarterly closings, carrying a new loan yield of 5.22%. These are typically 180-day notes tied to SOFR. They add asset sensitivity and optionality and will be among the first assets to reprice higher in a rising rate environment. Excluding correspondent banking, the weighted average yield on the new loan production was 6.20%, which is consistent with the overall portfolio yield. While Q3 is typically a slow period in the market, the current pipeline is robust, and we will reiterate our guidance of high single-digit to low double-digit net loan growth for the back half of 2026. Turning to the margin, net interest margin expanded to 3.49%, up 22 basis points from the first quarter. Net interest income increased 2.3 million, or 42.6% annualized quarter over quarter, and 3.4 million or 15.9% year-over-year. The expansion was driven by a favorable shift toward higher-yielding earning assets, improving loan yields, and disciplined funding costs. As recently originated loans continue to season into earnings, we expect the margin trajectory to remain constructive. We are managing a balance sheet that is generating real earnings momentum. A NIM approaching 350 is a meaningful milestone for this franchise, and we believe underlying drivers support a continued constructive outlook. The ongoing rate volatility in the competitive deposit environment will be factors we continue to manage carefully. Looking forward, I would suggest a 340 to 350 NIM for near-term modeling. So with that, let me pass it over to Sergio to discuss asset quality.

Thank you, Rob. Good morning, everyone. Asset quality improved during the quarter, highlighted by a decline in classified loans from 20 basis points of total loans from 30 basis points on March 31st. Non-performing loans also decreased to $2.1 million, or nine basis points of total loans, compared with $3.6 million, or 16 basis points of total loans, in the prior quarter. The allowance for credit losses increased to $26.7 million at June 30, 2026. While the ACL ratio declined modestly to 1.15 from 1.16 in the prior quarter, we recorded a provision for credit loss of $1.3 million, with a net ACL increase of about $600,000. This was driven primarily by portfolio growth and partially offset by a $288,000 charge-off. Net charge-off represented just five basis points of average loans. Overall, credit metrics remain strong with non-performing assets at seven basis points of total assets. As the quality remains sound, credit performance continues to support our disciplined growth strategy. Now, let me turn it back over to Rob. Rob?

Thank you, Sergio. Total non-interest income for the second quarter was $3.6 million, representing $12.7 of total revenue. As anticipated, this was down from the first quarter, primarily due to elevated swap activity in the prior period. Swap fees normalized to $572,000 from $1.6 million in Q1. Other service fee income increased $488,000, driven largely by loan prepayment penalties, a direct reflection of embedded protections in our loan portfolios. Overall, the quarter highlights the diversification and resilience of our fee-based revenue streams. Let's look at expenses. Total non-interest expense was $14 million, up just $255,000 from the prior quarter, and that increase was driven primarily by an increase or $312,000 increase or $312,000 excise tax on share repurchases executed in 2025. The efficiency ratio improved to 49.97%, supported by higher net interest income. Full-time headcount increased to 216, and we have additional hires planned in support of continued growth. You should expect expenses to rise at a measured pace, with the efficiency ratio remaining at current levels or in the low 50% range going forward. With that, let's turn to capital. Capital ratios remain robust, with total risk-based capital at 13.88%. On July 20th, our board declared a quarterly cash dividend of 12.5 cents per share, payable September 4th to shareholders as of record August 17th. AOCI stood at a negative $31.4 million, or $1.70 per share, and tangible book value per share grew to $12.64. Given our earnings and capital generation profile, and we anticipate continued capital accretion, while preserving flexibility to support balance sheet growth. With that, let me turn it back to Lou for some closing comments.

Thank you, Rob. Looking ahead, we remain optimistic about the opportunities before us. South Florida continues to benefit from favorable demographic, economic, and business migration trends, and we believe USCB is uniquely positioned to capitalize on that growth. Our investment in people, technology, new lending teams, and innovative deposit initiatives is creating additional avenues for sustainable growth and we remain committed to delivering long-term value to our shareholders while serving the evolving needs of our clients and communities. With that said, I'd like to open the floor to Q&A.

We will now begin the question and answer session. To ask a question, you may press star then one on your touchtone phone. If you're using a speakerphone, please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. If at any time your question has been addressed and you would like to withdraw your question, please press star then two. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble our roster. The first question today comes from Fetty Strickland with Hubby Group. Please go ahead.

Hey, good morning, and congrats on crossing that $3 billion asset threshold. You know, just wanted to ask, really want to start on loans here. Do you expect additional correspondent banking growth in the third quarter at kind of a similar level? That you saw this quarter. And the reason I ask is I'm just trying to get a sense of the new production yield. I know it's a little lower given the amount of growth there and just trying to get a sense for, you know, whether it's going to be closer to the 590 this quarter or closer to the 620 yield that kind of excludes those correspondent banking loans.

Yeah. Hey, good morning, Teddy. It's a good question. In the new loan production, we have a fair amount of our correspondent banking loans. They're typically 180-day notes. So those will revolve pretty quickly, and those are at lower yields, usually around 525. And as interest rates have moved up, I think that will move up as well. But our core franchise is originating loans around the 620 mark. So I would, one, think it would be at a similar rate yield of 590 to 6% on new loan production. And I would anticipate the new loan production to more moderate, to more consistent levels that we've done in the prior quarters. You know, this quarter was $272 million. We could go back to, you know, $175 to $190 million of new loan production. I would tell you the pipeline is pretty robust. But there's a lot of vacations, people taking off, so sometimes it drags a little bit. But we anticipate a strong third quarter.

Great. Thanks for that, Robert. And just wanted to ask, kind of similar, should we expect additional mixed shift this quarter from cash into loans and securities? Or is that $87 million I think you have on an average basis? expect to be pretty stable. Just trying to make sure I'm capturing the loan growth versus the earning asset growth appropriately.

Yeah, the $87 million was probably a little high. I mean, we'd probably like to see that around $50 million. We do have some clients that will bring in some funds either over the weekend that could make that go up. You do have window dressing at quarter end, so there's a little volatility always at quarter end. I kind of like the mix shift that we've done. I think that's on page 11 on our mix shift. I think that will continue to improve as we shift more cash and securities into loans.

Great. And just one more for me, if I can. Lou, I think I heard you talk about a new 1031 exchange vertical, and you're already seeing some deposits from that. Can you talk a little bit more about the opportunity set for that business?

Sure, Fadi. We've identified just a pretty significant number of transactional law firms, title companies here in the bank and CPAs. And what we're doing is that we're approaching them directly, marketing, letting them know that the service exists. Like I said, we launched it a couple months ago and we got $22 million in deposits coming in initially. Now, the money on 1031 exchanges, as you know, will stay for about 180 days, but the plan is to really market it, and instead of having the money go elsewhere for it to come here, the response has been very good, and we're excited about it.

All right, great. Thanks for taking the questions. I'll step back. Sure.

Thank you, Fannie.

The next question comes from Michael Rose with Raymond James. Please go ahead.

Hey, good morning, guys. Thanks for taking my questions. Rob, I think I heard you mention a margin range of $340 to $350. Can you just walk us through what would bring you towards the lower end versus the higher end? And just given the dynamics at play with rates and loan growth and deposit funding. Thanks.

Yeah. So probably on the lower end, we do have some... Funds that could price a little bit higher. You have rates moving up, competitive positions. We know we have to grow our deposit book, and every bank in the United States right now is concentrating on their deposit costs. While we were able to bring it down this quarter, that could tick up a little bit and impact our margin on the lower end of that, certainly maintaining our DDA. On the bright side, I mean, we have 100 million of maturities in loan maturities this quarter coming up at 584. And for the fourth quarter, we have another 78 at 535. And I think we can reprice those and put those out at 625 or so. So that would be on the high side. But I do think that range is sustainable for the balance of the year. And we do profile fairly neutral on an interest rate risk standpoint. So Assuming rates are flatter, at least on the front end, I think 340 to 350 is a good number.

Okay, that's helpful. And then maybe just one follow-up, just as it relates to the wholesale funding and the FHOB advances, obviously, up this quarter. Is that something you would expect to kind of continue, or is that just kind of a one-quarter kind of optimization here, just given some of the pricing dynamics? Thanks.

Yeah, just in general in terms of the practices, as we attract new deposits, new relationships, whether it's on the loan side, we'll review those relationships from time to time. And we don't mind paying a little bit higher funding cost up front, but it's on the premise that you bring us the relationship. If that doesn't happen, typically what we'll do is ask them multiple times for the relationship. If that's not going to materialize, We will normalize that rate on their book, and sometimes that leaves. So there is some hot money from time to time. I think we'd rather backfill it with some wholesale funding, but it won't be as steep going forward. And that's just kind of the practice we have on maintaining the book. But the main point is that we know we have to grow our deposit book with granular, low-cost deposits to keep the funding.

Very, very helpful. Thanks. I'll step back. Thanks, Michael.

The next question comes from Christopher Maranac with Breanne Capital. Please go ahead.

Hey, good morning. Rob, given the pipeline that you talked about on the loan side, I'm just curious if there is any change in sort of the average size of loans that you're doing. Is the opportunity still kind of the sub-$5 million credit, or are you seeing bigger opportunities? What we're seeing is greater growth in total credit exposure, which in the past we probably kept in the, let's say, $10 or $15 million range. Now we're probably having an internal limit of upwards of $40 million. So we're getting more clients bringing us more loans, but we shy away from one large loan. If you have $40 million in total credit exposure, that's probably going to be comprised of a I think on average, the average size of the loan that is indicated in the presentation, I think we have it on page 20, is pretty much the same. It hasn't changed. I think the average is about $2 million.

Got it. Okay.

Thank you for clarifying that. And then, As you think about over the years, there's been a whole host of new entrants into the Miami greater marketplace, and you've seen this a lot of your careers. I'm just kind of curious if you've seen lately new entrants come in who later kind of retreat and that that opens up more opportunities for you as a local. Not really. We've seen what we've seen. There's been, you know, on the M&A side, you see... What's been advantageous for us is that when the two banks get together, ultimately we've been seeing a lot of migration of talent and clients, and that disruption is beneficial for us. There's a new series of de novos that you read about. We know a bunch of them. We stay in touch with them. They have low lending limits. A few of them have approaches actually on participation opportunities. We don't see that impacting us at all. And like I said, the disruption that happens with clients has been beneficial over the years. Great. And then last question for me just goes back to maybe kind of your internal pipeline for new deposits. I mean, do you see that kind of matching what you see robust on the loan side? It's definitely growing, and we have everybody very much focused on it. Our association banking team is doing very, very well. Our correspondent banking team, the 1031 Exchange Initiative, our Jurist Advantage, which is focused on the attorney business, and the private client group, all have been doing very well, and business banking. So we're encouraging them. We're giving them the tools to make it happen. and I'm very optimistic that they'll deliver. Very well. Thanks for taking my questions.

Thanks, Chris. Thank you, Christopher.

This concludes our question and answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Mr. Aguilera for any closing remarks.

Thank you. As we conclude, I'd like to thank our shareholders, customers, employees and board of directors for their continued confidence and support. Our second quarter results reflect the strength of our relationship-driven franchise, the dedication of our team, and our disciplined approach to growth and risk management. While operating environment remains competitive, we're well-positioned to capitalize on opportunities across our markets and continue creating long-term value for our shareholders. We remain focused on serving our clients, investing in our communities, and executing our strategic objectives with prudence and purpose. So thank you for joining us today, and we look forward to updating you on our continued progress next quarter. Thank you.

The conference has concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.