Overview

* Metropolitan Bank Q2 diluted EPS rises 21.4% from Q1 to $1.76

* Net interest margin improves to 3.83%, up from 3.68% in Q1

* Co completes $50 mln share buyback, announces new $50 mln buyback plan

Outlook

* Strong balance sheet supports strategic growth initiatives

* Bank confident in financial strength for future opportunities

Result Drivers

* NET INTEREST MARGIN - Increase to 3.83% driven by loan and deposit pricing initiatives

* LOAN GROWTH - Total loans increased by $270.7 mln, primarily in commercial real estate

* ASSET QUALITY - Stable asset quality with slight increase in non-performing loans ratio

Key Details

Metric Beat/Mis Actual Consensu

s s

Estimate

Q2 $76.27

Revenue mln

Q2 EPS $1.76

Q2 Net $18.77

Income mln

Q2 Net $73.60

Interest mln

Income

Q2 Net 3.8%

Interest

Margin

Analyst Coverage

* The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 3 "strong buy" or "buy", no "hold" and no "sell" or "strong sell"

* The average consensus recommendation for the banks peer group is "buy"

* Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp ( MCB ) is $79.00, about 6.7% above its July 16 closing price of $73.74

Press Release:

(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)