Ameris Bancorp

Good day and welcome to the Ameris Bancorp first quarter 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 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 Nicole Stokes, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.

Thank you, Bailey, and thank you to all who have joined our call today. During the call, we will be referencing the press release and the financial highlights that are available on the Investor Relations section of our website at AmerisBank.com. I'm joined today with Palmer Proctor, our CEO, and Doug Strange, our Chief Credit Officer. Palmer will begin with some opening comments, and then I will discuss the details of our financial results before we open up for Q&A. But before we begin, I'll remind you that our comments may include forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. The actual results could vary materially. We list some of the factors that might cause results to differ in our press release and in our SEC filings, which are available on our website. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, early developments or otherwise, except as required by law. Also during the call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures in reference to our performance. You can see our reconciliation of these measures and GAAP financial measures in the appendix to our presentation. And with that, I'll turn it over to Palmer for his comments.

Thank you, Nicole. Good morning, everyone. We appreciate you taking the time to join our first quarter call. I'm proud of our performance to start the year primarily from three things. First, we operated at a high level of core profitability with an ROA above 160, PPNR ROA at 230, and a return on tangible common equity of almost 15%. Second, we experienced good growth in loans, deposits, earning assets, and revenue. And third, we actively managed our capital by repurchasing 1.4% of the company in the quarter. at about a 7.5% discount to yesterday's closing price. In addition to those three positives, I want to revisit something I said on our first quarter call last year. I said we were focused on enhancing revenue generation and positive operating leverage. And once again, we executed on our plan. Compared to the first quarter of 2025, our quarterly revenue is up 10%, with expenses up only 4%. That's about a 21% efficiency ratio on our growth due to our focus on efficient, organic, profitable growth. More specifically, on an annualized basis, we grew loans and deposits by 5% to 6%, along with earning assets at nearly 10%. Revenue increased 9.5%, driven by an uptick in fee income, which represented a strong 22% of total revenue for the quarter. Our continued focus on expense discipline across the company results in efficiency rates of just under 50% despite some seasonal revenue and expense headwinds in the first quarter. Our net interest margin expanded three basis points to 388 in the quarter and remains well above peer level. Loan production was 2.2 billion in the first quarter, a 45% increase over first quarter last year. Our loan pipeline remained robust at 2.8 billion. On the deposit front, we continue to focus on core granular deposits and relationship banking with total deposits up 5% annualized in the quarter. Our non-interest-bearing deposits grew 323 million in the quarter, recapturing some of the seasonal decline of last quarter. Our non-interest-bearing deposits returned to 30% of total deposits, and we have minimal reliance on broker funds. We increased our capital return in the quarter by repurchasing 75 million, or 1.4% of shares outstanding, which is the highest level of buybacks we have had in any one quarter. Capital levels remain robust, with CET1 finishing at roughly 13%, and our TCE ratio is slightly above 11%. These capital levels position us well for any type of environment. Credit quality was stable. Our 162 reserve was unchanged. and both net charge-offs and non-performing assets, excluding government-guaranteed mortgages, improved modestly in the quarter. CRE and construction concentrations were relatively stable at 265 and 46 percent, respectively. Overall, we remain well-positioned for future growth, and this growth should be positively impacted by the continued disruption in our southeastern footprint. I'll stop there and turn it over to Nicole to discuss our financial results in more detail.