Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Mark Ruggiero: Yeah. At this point, we feel that’s sufficient. As I noted in my comments, there’s a lot of moving pieces to it. So obviously, actual loss is still somewhat undetermined at this point, which is why we have not taken a charge-off and have taken a specific allocation. But there’s really additional work being done, the company did file bankruptcy, and there is a liquidation expected of the company which will drive collection on receivables. That’s our primary collateral. So it’s truly just a function of how well those receivables hold up in terms of what sort of repayment we’ll get through the process. We expect that timing, unfortunately, to linger a bit. This is a large, syndicated deal, many banks involved. So I wouldn’t anticipate a charge-off. Well, I wouldn’t expect full resolution in the first quarter, whether we’ll be in a position to take a charge-off is still to be determined.

Mark Fitzgibbon: Okay. And then lastly, can you remind us, Mark, how large your Boston office book is and maybe what the average LTVs and debt service coverage ratios look like on that?

Mark Ruggiero: Sure. I have the dollar amount in terms of true downtown Boston office exposure is about $240 million in balances, a little bit higher in exposure. I think it’s important to note, included in there is about $50 million of owner occupied. So it’s a portfolio we feel really good about and is quite small in regards to the total office portfolio of about $1.5 billion. There are some other exposures in neighboring cities like Brighton, Jamaica Plain, that’s probably another $80 million to $100 million in total balances. But we feel good about the exposure. I don’t have all the LTV and debt service metrics in front of me, but I do know that those have been faring well. And we’re not seeing anything from a pervasive control by any means — a pervasive concern at this point.

Mark Fitzgibbon: Thank you.

Mark Ruggiero: Sure.

Chris Oddleifson: Thanks, Mark.

Operator: Our next question comes from Steve Moss with Raymond James. Please go ahead with your question.

Steve Moss: Good morning.

Chris Oddleifson: Good morning, Steve.

Steve Moss: And Chris, congratulations again on your retirement here.

Chris Oddleifson: Thank you.

Steve Moss: Maybe just starting off on the margin and NII outlook. Just curious, where is loan pricing these days? And then if we think about the Fed, moving to stay around 5% on Fed funds and holding there for the rest of the year, how are you guys thinking about that margin trajectory?

Mark Ruggiero: Sure. Yeah. So the first element of your question, Steve, in terms of new volume. Certainly, from a fixed rate perspective, we continue to see the lift of the increase in rates. So for the fourth quarter, keep in mind, there’s a bit of a lag in terms of when loans are committed to versus when they hit the books. So focused primarily on new out standings for the quarter. We saw fixed rate pricing on the commercial side certainly move north to the high 5% to 6% range. For mortgage, it was more in the mid 5% range in terms of what got booked in the quarter and similarly, home equity slightly north of that. So obviously, a reflection of the rising rate environment. We’ve seen good churn over in terms of the yield on new volumes getting booked.