 CORAL GABLES, Fla., July 24, 2020 GLOBE NEWSWIRE -- Amerant Bancorp Inc. NASDAQ: AMTB and AMTBB the Company or Amerant today reported second quarter of 2020 net loss of 15.3 million, compared to net income of 3.4 million reported in the first quarter and net income of 12.9 million reported in the three months ended June 30, 2019. Net loss for the six months ended June 30, 2020 was 11.9 million, compared to net income of 25.9 million reported in the six months ended June 30, 2019. Net loss per share was 0.37 in the second quarter of 2020, compared to 0.08 net income per diluted share in the first quarter of 2020, and 0.30 net income per diluted share in the second quarter of 2019. Net loss per share for the six months ended June 30, 2020 was 0.28, compared to 0.60 net income per diluted share for the six months ended June 30, 2019. Operating income was 21.6 million in the second quarter of 2020, up 29.7 from 16.7 million in the first quarter of 2020, and up 53.8 from 14.0 million in the same period of 2019. Operating income was 38.3 million for the six months ended June 30, 2020, up 24.7 from 30.7 million in the six months ended June 30, 2019. Annualized return on assets ROA and return on equity ROE were negative 0.75 and 7.21, respectively, in the second quarter of 2020, compared to positive 0.17 and 1.61, respectively, in the first quarter of 2020, and positive 0.66 and 6.56, respectively, in the second quarter of 2019. ROA and ROE for the first six months of 2020 were negative 0.3 and 2.82, respectively, compared to positive 0.66 and 6.76, respectively, for the first six months of 2019.Millar Wilson, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, During the second quarter, we remained focused on driving excellence across our business, underscored by significant operating income, as we continue to navigate the unprecedented circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to run our business while protecting the safety and well-being of our employees and customers. We bolstered our credit reserves to near-historic high coverage levels and continued to manage our balance sheet for long term success, selling select investment securities at attractive prices to help compensate for earnings declines associated with the current interest rate environment and incremental allowance for loan losses. Of note, in the second quarter we realized a gain of 7.5 million on the sale of 30-year Treasury securities, which we purchased in the first quarter of 2020 as a prepayment mitigation strategy.Mr. Wilson continued, In the second quarter, we were excited to see our relationship-driven strategy and the hard work of our team pay-off. We had a surge in our domestic deposits and were pleased to see that our foreign deposits even increased slightly compared to the first quarter of 2020. Moreover, during the second quarter we demonstrated the strength of our funding sources through the sale of our 60 million investment grade-rated senior notes. With this funding, we have 217.3 million in cash and cash equivalents as of the end of the second quarter which puts Amerant in a strong position to continue to navigate the current environment. Simultaneously, we continued implementing several COVID-19-related initiatives for the benefit of the Companys customers and local communities, deepening our customer relationships, and decisively moving forward with our digital transformation and other efficiency initiatives, including launching our new Amerant Investments Mobile application.Mr. Wilson concluded, Finally, in the second quarter, we were pleased to continue supporting our communities by providing over 2,000 PPP loans, totaling over 200 million. We are proud to have helped local small businesses retain employees and keep their doors open, and excited that we developed new customer relationships along the way. I am proud of the entire Amerant team for staying close to our customers and their unwavering commitment to driving our business forward, bonded by our reinvigorated mission, vision and values. Even during these unprecedented times, Amerant remains well-positioned to serve customers and create value for shareholders.Summary ResultsThe summary results of the second quarter ended June 30, 2020 include: Net loss of 15.3 million, compared to net income of 3.4 million in the first quarter of 2020 and net income of 12.9 million in the same period of 2019. The net loss compared to net income in the first quarter of 2020 was primarily due to higher provision for loan losses and lower net interest income in the second quarter of 2020, offset by lower non-interest expenses. The net loss compared to net income in the same quarter last year was primarily due to higher provision for loan losses in the second quarter of 2020 and lower net interest income, offset by higher non-interest income and lower non-interest expenses. Operating income, which excludes provision for income tax, provision for loan losses or reversals and net gains on securities, increased to 21.6 million, up 29.7 from 16.7 million in the first quarter of 2020, and up 53.8 from 14.0 million in the same period of 2019. Net interest income NII was 46.3 million, down 5.9 from 49.2 million in the first quarter of 2020, and down 13.9 from 53.8 million in the same period of 2019. Lower NII versus the first quarter of 2020 is mainly due to a full quarter of lower market rates on variable-rate loans following the emergency rate cuts implemented by the Federal Reserve during March 2020, partially offset by higher average loan balances and lower deposit and professional funding costs. Compared to the second quarter 2019, lower NII in the second quarter of 2020 is attributed to a decline in average yields on interest-earning assets, partially offset by higher average interest-earning asset balances and lower deposit and professional funding costs. Net interest margin NIM was 2.44 in the second quarter of 2020, down from 2.65 and 2.92 in the first quarter of 2020 and the second quarter 2019, respectively. Credit quality remained sound and reserve coverage is strong despite recent developments associated with one large loan relationship. The Company continues to closely monitor the performance of its loan portfolio estimated to be impacted by the decline in business activity associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, and continues refining its estimated probable loss assumptions. The Company recorded a provision for loan losses of 48.6 million during the second quarter of 2020, compared to the provision of 22.0 million recorded in the first quarter of 2020. As a result, the Company increased its allowance for loan losses ALL to 119.7 million during the second quarter of 2020, compared to 72.9 million during the first quarter of 2020. In the second quarter of 2019, the Company released 1.4 million from the ALL. The ratio of the ALL to total loans was 2.04 as of June 30, 2020, up from 1.29 in the first quarter of 2020 and up from 0.99 in the same period last year. In the second quarter of 2020, the ratio of loan charge-offs to average total loans remained at a low level of 0.13, up from 0.09 in the first quarter of 2020, and up from 0.11 in the second quarter of 2019. Noninterest income was 19.8 million, down 9.8 from 21.9 million in the first quarter of 2020, and up 39.6 from 14.1 million in the same period of 2019. The decrease from the first quarter of 2020 was due to 1.7 million less in net gains on the sale of debt securities, which was 7.5 million in the second quarter of 2020 compared to 9.2 million in the first quarter of 2020, partially offset by higher derivative income. The increase over the same quarter of 2019 was primarily due to the absence of net gains on the sale of securities in that period. Noninterest expense was 36.7 million, down 18.1 from 44.9 million in the first quarter of 2020, and down 30.6 from 52.9 million in the second quarter of 2019. The quarter-over-quarter decline in noninterest expense was mainly driven by lower salaries and employee benefit expenses attributed to the deferral of direct origination costs associated with the Small Business Administration SBAs Paycheck Protection Program PPP loans funded this quarter. Non-refundable loan origination fees, net of direct costs of originating loans, are deferred and amortized over the term of the related loans as adjustments to interest income in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles GAAP. Additionally, lower other operating expenses contributed to the decline in noninterest expense, partially offset by higher professional and other services fees. The year-over-year decline also resulted mainly from lower salaries and employee benefit expenses, and lower restructuring costs in the second quarter of 2020 related to Amerants transformation efforts. Adjusted noninterest expense was 35.4 million in the second quarter of 2020, down 20.4 from 44.5 million in the first quarter of 2020, and down 29.4 from 50.2 million in the second quarter of 2019. Adjusted noninterest expense in the second quarter of 2020 excludes 1.3 million in restructuring expenses, compared to 0.4 million in the first quarter of 2020 and 2.7 million in the same quarter last year. The efficiency ratio was 55.6 53.6 adjusted for restructuring expenses, compared to 63.1 62.6 adjusted for restructuring expenses during the first quarter of 2020, and 77.9 73.8 adjusted for restructuring expenses for the corresponding period of 2019. These improvements in the second quarter of 2020 are mainly attributed to the lower noninterest expenses driven by the deferral of origination costs associated with PPP loans, as previously explained. 