Shore Community Bank Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results for 2009

TOMS RIVER, N.J., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Shore Community Bank (OTC Bulletin Board: SHRC) today reported net income of $77,771 for the three months ended December 31, 2009, compared to net income of $91,154 for the same period in 2008.  Basic and diluted net income per share for the three months ended December 31, 2009 were 5 cents which equaled the basic and diluted net income per share of 5 cents for the same period in 2008.

For the year ended December 31, 2009, Shore Community Bank reported net income of $115,771, compared to $16,170 for the year ended December 31, 2008.  Basic and diluted net income per share for the year 2009 were 7 cents, as compared to 1 cent, basic and diluted, reported for the year 2008.

The Bank's assets, at December 31, 2009, increased 2.8 percent and totaled $214.1 million, compared to $208.1 million at December 31, 2008.  Total loans declined 11.4 percent and finished the year at $138.7 million, as compared to $156.5 million at December 31, 2008.  Total deposits increased 3.5 percent to $178.1 million at December 31, 2009, as compared to $172.0 million at December 31, 2008.

The provision for loan losses totaled $375 thousand and net loan charge-offs totaled $198 thousand for the three months ended December 31, 2009, as compared to a provision for loan losses of $275 thousand and net loan charge-offs of $482 thousand for the same period in 2008. For the year ended December 31, 2009, the provision for loan losses totaled $1.6 million and net loan charge-offs were $1.7 million, as compared to $1.5 million and $1.6 million, respectively in 2008. The allowance for loan losses as a percentage of period end loans was 1.48 percent at December 31, 2009 compared to 1.34 percent at December 31, 2008.

Robert T. English, President and Chief Executive Officer commented, "We were faced with numerous challenges in 2009 including an increase in non-performing loans, higher loan loss provisions and a greater level of charge-offs as well as a FDIC special deposit insurance assessment. In spite of these obstacles, the Bank recorded net income for the year of $115,771. The actions taken in the latter half of 2008 to reduce operating expenses and streamline the organization were timely and undoubtedly contributed to our 2009 bottom line." English stated further, "Nevertheless, credit quality issues remain a major concern and will remain so until the economy meaningfully improves and the government addresses the unemployment situation. As we enter 2010, there are signs the recession which began in late 2007 is behind us and a modest recovery is underway."

Non-performing assets, which includes other real estate owned, stood at $10.0 million at December 31, 2009, compared to $7.5 million at year end 2008. The Bank's capital ratios remain strong and are in excess of what is considered "well capitalized" by bank regulatory standards. At December 31, 2009, the Bank's Tier 1 leverage and Tier 1 risk based capital ratio were 8.24 percent and 12.24 percent, respectively. The Bank's total risk-based capital ratio was 13.49 percent.

Shore Community Bank is traded on the OTC Bulletin Board (Over the Counter Bulletin Board) under the symbol SHRC.  

Shore Community Bank operates six banking offices, located in Toms River, Ortley Beach, Jackson, and Manahawkin, New Jersey.  The Bank was founded in 1997 by a group of local business leaders to return community-based banking to the Toms River, Ocean County, New Jersey area.

Information in this release relating to Shore Community Bank's future prospects which are forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, the following: (1) operating, legal and regulatory risks, such as continued levels of loan quality and origination volume, continued relationships with major customers and technological changes; (2) economic, political and competitive forces affecting our banking business, such as changes in economic conditions, especially in our market area, interest rate fluctuations, competitive product and pricing pressures within our market, personal and corporate bankruptcies, monetary policy and inflation; (3) our ability to grow internally or through acquisitions; and (4) the risk that management's analyses of these risks and forces could be incorrect and/or that the strategies developed to address them could be unsuccessful. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "expects," "believe," "will," "intends," "will be" or "would." Shore Community Bank assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking information in this announcement, except as required under applicable law.

SOURCE Shore Community Bank