HERITAGE FINANCIAL ANNOUNCES SECOND QUARTER 2025 RESULTS AND DECLARES REGULAR CASH DIVIDEND OF $0.24 PER SHARE

Second Quarter 2025 Highlights

• Net income was $12.2 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, compared to $13.9 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2025.
• Results included a pre-tax loss on sale of securities of $6.9 million resulting in a negative impact of $0.15 per diluted share.
• Net interest margin increased to 3.51%, from 3.44% for the first quarter of 2025.
• Yield on loans increased to 5.50%, from 5.45% for the first quarter of 2025.
• Cost of interest bearing deposits increased to 1.94%, from 1.92% for the first quarter of 2025.
• Declared a regular cash dividend of $0.24 per share on July 23, 2025.

OLYMPIA, Wash., July 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Heritage Financial Corporation (Nasdaq GS: HFWA) (the "Company", "we," or "us"), the parent company of Heritage Bank (the "Bank"), today reported net income of $12.2 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $13.9 million for the first quarter of 2025 and $14.2 million for the second quarter of 2024. Diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2025 were $0.36 compared to $0.40 for the first quarter of 2025 and $0.41 for the second quarter of 2024.

In the second quarter of 2025, the Company incurred a pre-tax loss of $6.9 million on the sale of investment securities in connection with the strategic repositioning of its balance sheet, which decreased diluted earnings per share by $0.15 for the quarter. The Company sold $91.6 million of investment securities with an average book yield of 2.63%. Net proceeds from the sale were used to purchase $56.4 million in investment securities with an average book yield of 5.06% and fund new loans originated during the quarter. The Company also incurred pre-tax losses on the sale of investment securities in connection with balance sheet repositioning during the first quarter of 2025 and second quarter of 2024 in the amounts of $3.9 million and $1.9 million, respectively, which decreased diluted earnings per share by $0.09 and $0.04, respectively, for such quarters.

In addition, the Company surrendered $8.5 million of its bank owned life insurance ("BOLI") portfolio during the second quarter of 2025, incurring tax expense related to the surrender of BOLI of $515,000 which decreased diluted earnings per share by $0.02 for the quarter.

Bryan McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented, "We are pleased with the continued growth in core earnings, both compared to the prior quarter and to the same quarter in the prior year. This is partly due to the ongoing expansion of our net interest margin, due mostly to increases in yields on loans and investment securities. Despite a seasonal decline in deposit balances in the second quarter, our total deposits have increased $100 million since year-end 2024. We continue to strategically reposition our balance sheet to improve future profitability and will consider investment in new production teams when favorable opportunities are presented. Although these actions may impact current earnings, we believe future earnings will be enhanced and we are optimistic that the combination of our strong balance sheet and prudent risk management will provide sustainable long-term returns for our shareholders."

Financial Highlights

The following table provides financial highlights at the dates and for the periods indicated:

Balance Sheet

Total investment securities decreased $67.6 million, or 4.8%, to $1.35 billion at June 30, 2025 from $1.41 billion at March 31, 2025. As previously noted, the Company sold $91.6 million of investment securities at a pre-tax loss of $6.9 million during the quarter as part of its strategic balance sheet repositioning. In addition, there were investment maturities and repayments of $40.8 million during the second quarter of 2025. The decrease was partially offset by investment security purchases of $56.4 million during the second quarter of 2025 and an $8.0 million decrease in unrealized losses on available for sale securities.

The following table summarizes the composition of the Company's investment securities portfolio at the dates indicated:

Loans receivable increased $10.0 million, or 0.2%, to $4.77 billion at June 30, 2025 from $4.76 billion at March 31, 2025. New loans funded increased during the second quarter of 2025 to $139.9 million, compared to $95.8 million during the first quarter of 2025. New loan commitments increased during the second quarter of 2025 to $267.6 million compared to $201.0 million during the first quarter of 2025, reflecting the seasonality of loan originations. Loan prepayments decreased to $58.9 million during the quarter, compared to $79.9 million during the prior quarter. Loan payoffs increased to $51.0 million, compared to $47.5 million in the prior quarter.

Commercial and industrial loans decreased $19.7 million, or 2.3%, during the second quarter, due primarily to pay downs on outstanding balances, partially offset by new loan production of $18.7 million. Owner-occupied commercial real estate ("CRE") loans increased $29.6 million, or 3.0%, during the second quarter, due primarily to new loan production of $49.1 million, offset by pay downs on outstanding balances. Non-owner occupied CRE loans increased $24.0 million, or 1.3%, during the quarter, due primarily to new loan production of $57.8 million, offset by pay downs on outstanding balances. Residential construction and commercial and multifamily construction loans decreased $19.9 million or 4.4%, due primarily to pay downs on outstanding balances.

The following table summarizes the Company's loans receivable at the dates indicated:

Total deposits decreased $60.9 million, or 1.0%, to $5.78 billion at June 30, 2025 from $5.85 billion at March 31, 2025. Non-maturity deposits decreased by $57.3 million, or 1.2%, from March 31, 2025 due primarily to a decline in customer balances in noninterest bearing demand and interest bearing demand accounts. The decrease in non-maturity deposits was partially offset by an increase of $27.1 million in money market accounts as customers transferred balances into these higher yielding accounts. Although total deposits at June 30, 2025 decreased from March 31, 2025, average total deposits increased $35.4 million during the second quarter of 2025.

The following table summarizes the Company's total deposits at the dates indicated:

Total borrowings decreased $1.2 million to $263.2 million at June 30, 2025 from $264.4 million at March 31, 2025. All outstanding borrowings at June 30, 2025 were with the Federal Home Loan Bank ("FHLB") and mature within one year.

Total stockholders' equity increased $6.7 million, or 0.8%, to $888.2 million at June 30, 2025 compared to $881.5 million at March 31, 2025 due primarily to $12.2 million of net income recognized for the quarter. The increase in total stockholders' equity was also due to a $6.2 million decrease in accumulated other comprehensive loss as a result of losses recognized on sales of investment securities in connection with balance sheet repositioning efforts. These increases were partially offset by $8.3 million in dividends paid to common shareholders and $4.6 million of stock repurchases.

The Company and Bank continued to maintain capital levels in excess of the applicable regulatory requirements for them both to be categorized as "well-capitalized" at June 30, 2025.

The following table summarizes the capital ratios for the Company at the dates indicated:

Allowance for Credit Losses and Provision for Credit Losses

The allowance for credit losses ("ACL") on loans as a percentage of loans receivable was 1.10% at June 30, 2025 compared to 1.09% at March 31, 2025. The increase in the ACL as a percentage of loans was due primarily to changes in the weighted average life of the loans in the real estate construction and land development segment. During the second quarter of 2025, the Company recorded an $863,000 provision for credit losses on loans, compared to a $9,000 reversal of provision for credit losses on loans during the first quarter of 2025. The provision for credit losses on loans recognized during the second quarter of 2025 was due primarily to charge-offs of $494,000 and secondarily to growth in balances of collectively evaluated loans.  

During the second quarter of 2025, the Company recorded a $93,000 provision for credit losses on unfunded commitments compared to a $60,000 provision during the first quarter of 2025. The provision for credit losses on unfunded commitments during the second quarter of 2025 was due primarily to an increase in the unfunded exposure on construction loans.

The following table provides detail on the changes in the ACL on loans and the ACL on unfunded commitments, and the related provision for (reversal of) credit losses for the periods indicated:

Credit Quality

Classified loans (loans rated substandard or worse) increased $35.3 million from the prior quarter, resulting in the percentage of classified loans to loans receivable increasing to 2.1% at June 30, 2025 compared to 1.4% at March 31, 2025. The Company downgraded $38.2 million of loans to substandard during the second quarter of 2025, including, non-owner occupied CRE loans of $16.3 million, commercial and industrial loans of $9.7 million, commercial and multifamily construction loans of $6.0 million, and owner occupied CRE loans of $5.7 million. 

The following table illustrates total loans by risk rating and their respective percentage of total loans at the dates indicated:

Nonaccrual loans increased by $5.4 million during the second quarter of 2025 due primarily to the migration of a $6.0 million commercial and multifamily construction loan and a $1.7 million commercial and industrial loan. These increases were partially offset by a $2.0 million pay down on a commercial real estate loan. The following table illustrates changes in nonaccrual loans during the periods indicated:

Liquidity

Total liquidity sources available at June 30, 2025 were $2.38 billion. This includes on- and off-balance sheet liquidity. The Company has access to FHLB advances and the Federal Reserve Bank ("FRB") Discount Window. The Company's available liquidity sources at June 30, 2025 represented a coverage ratio of 41.1% of total deposits and 100.4% of estimated uninsured deposits.

The following table summarizes the Company's available liquidity:

Net Interest Margin and Net Interest Income

The net interest margin increased seven basis points to 3.51% during the second quarter of 2025 from 3.44% during the first quarter of 2025.

The yield on interest earning assets increased six basis points to 5.01% for the second quarter of 2025, compared to 4.95% for the first quarter of 2025. The yield on loans receivable increased five basis points to 5.50% during the second quarter of 2025, compared to 5.45% during the first quarter of 2025 as new loans were booked and adjustable rate loans repriced at higher rates.

The cost of interest bearing deposits increased two basis points to 1.94% for the second quarter of 2025 from 1.92% for the first quarter of 2025. This increase was primarily due to an increase in rates on interest bearing demand and money market accounts during the quarter, offset partially by a decrease in certificate of deposit rates.

Net interest income increased $1.3 million, or 2.4%, during the second quarter of 2025 compared to the first quarter of 2025 due to a $1.1 million increase in total interest income and a decrease in interest expense of $0.2 million.

The net interest margin increased 24 basis points to 3.51% from 3.27% compared to the same period in the prior year. Net interest income increased $3.9 million, or 7.6%, during the second quarter of 2025 compared to the second quarter of 2024. The increase was due to a change in the mix of earning assets to higher yielding loan balances and a decrease in borrowing interest expense due to lower average balances, partially offset by an increase in deposit interest expense resulting from increased average balances and rates.

The following table provides relevant net interest income information for the periods indicated:

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income decreased $2.4 million to $1.5 million during the second quarter of 2025 from $3.9 million during the first quarter of 2025. The decrease was due primarily to higher losses resulting from the above-referenced sale of investment securities recognized in the second quarter of 2025 as part of the strategic repositioning of the balance sheet, compared to losses recognized in the prior quarter. The decrease was partially offset by an increase in BOLI income due to death benefit proceeds and an increase in card revenue due to increased card activity.

Noninterest income decreased $3.7 million from the same period in 2024 due primarily to higher losses resulting from the above-referenced sale of investment securities recognized in the second quarter of 2025 as part of the strategic repositioning of the balance sheet, compared to losses recognized in the same quarter in 2024. The decrease was partially offset by an increase in BOLI income as a result of BOLI restructuring which occurred in the fourth quarter of 2024 and an increase in other income primarily due to an increase in FHLB dividend income.

The following table presents the key components of noninterest income and the change for the periods indicated:

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense decreased $0.3 million, or 0.7%, to $41.1 million during the second quarter of 2025, compared to $41.4 million in the first quarter of 2025, due primarily to a decrease in compensation and employee benefits resulting from a decrease in payroll taxes, offset partially by an increase in salary expense due to annual merit increases in base pay. Data processing expense decreased primarily due to a decline in ongoing costs resulting from technology-related contract renewals. Professional fees increased due primarily to consulting costs related to technology-related contract renewals.

Noninterest expense increased $2.0 million, or 5.1%, during the second quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024 due primarily to an increase in compensation and employee benefits due to annual merit increases in base pay. Professional fees increased due primarily to consulting costs related to technology-related contract renewals recognized in the second quarter of 2025.

The following table presents the key components of noninterest expense and the change for the periods indicated:

Income Tax Expense

Income tax expense was $2.2 million during the second quarter of 2025 and first quarter of 2025. The Company recognized $515,000 in income tax expense related to the surrender of $8.5 million in BOLI policies during the second quarter of 2025.

Income tax expense increased $0.4 million in the second quarter of 2025 compared to same period in 2024 due primarily to a higher effective tax rate during the second quarter of 2025.

The following table presents the income tax expense and related metrics and the change for the periods indicated:

Dividends

On July 23, 2025, the Company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share. The dividend is payable on August 20, 2025 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on August 6, 2025.

Earnings Conference Call

The Company will hold a telephone conference call to discuss this earnings release on Thursday, July 24, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific time. To access the call, please dial (833) 470-1428 -- access code 464904 a few minutes prior to 10:00 a.m. Pacific time. The call will be available for replay through July 31, 2025 by dialing (866) 813-9403 -- access code 276171.

About Heritage Financial Corporation

Heritage Financial Corporation is an Olympia, Washington-based bank holding company with Heritage Bank, a full-service commercial bank, as its sole wholly-owned banking subsidiary. Heritage Bank has a network of 50 branches and one loan production office in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Heritage Bank does business under the Whidbey Island Bank name on Whidbey Island, Washington. The Company's stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "HFWA." More information about Heritage Financial Corporation can be found on its website at www.hf-wa.com and more information about Heritage Bank can be found on its website at www.heritagebanknw.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements often include words such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "forecasts," "intends," "plans," "targets," "potentially," "probably," "projects," "outlook" or similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as "may," "will," "should," "would," and "could," as well as the negative of such words. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent management's current expectations and forecasts regarding future events, many of which are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. Actual results may differ, possibly materially, from those currently expected or projected in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following: potential adverse impacts to economic conditions nationally or in our local market areas, other markets where we have lending relationships, or other aspects of our business operations or financial markets including, without limitation, as a result of credit quality deterioration, pronounced and sustained reductions in real estate market values, employment levels, labor shortages, and potential recession or slowed economic growth; effects on the U.S. economy resulting from the threat or implementation of, or changes to existing, policies and executive orders, including the imposition of tariffs, changes to immigration policy, regulatory and other governmental agencies, DEI and ESG initiatives, consumer protection, foreign policy, and tax regulations; changes in the interest rate environment which could adversely affect our revenues and expenses, the value of assets and obligations, and the availability and cost of capital and liquidity; the level and impact of inflation and the current and future monetary policies of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in response thereto; legislative or regulatory changes that adversely affect our business, including changes in banking, securities, and tax law, in regulatory policies and principles, or the interpretation and prioritization of such rules and regulations; credit and interest rate risks associated with our business, customers, borrowings, repayment, investment, and deposit practices; fluctuations in deposits and deposit concentrations; liquidity issues, including our ability to borrow funds or raise additional capital, if necessary; fluctuations in the value of our investment securities; credit risks and risks from concentrations (by type of geographic area, collateral and industry) within our loan portfolio; disruptions, security breaches, insider fraud, cybersecurity incidents or other adverse events, failures or interruptions in, or attacks on, our information technology systems or on the third-party vendors who perform critical processing functions for our business, including sophisticated attacks using artificial intelligence and similar tools; rapid technological changes implemented by us and other parties in the financial services industry; including third-party vendors, which may be more difficult to implement or more expensive than anticipated or which may have unforeseen consequence to us and our customers, including the development and implementation of tools incorporating artificial intelligence; increased competition in the financial services industry from non-banks such as credit unions and financial technology companies, including digital asset service providers; our ability to adapt successfully to technological changes to compete effectively in the marketplace, including as a result of competition from other commercial banks, mortgage banking firms, credit unions, securities brokerage firms, insurance companies, and Fintech  companies; effects of critical accounting policies and judgments, including the use of estimates in determining fair value of certain of our assets, which estimates may prove to be incorrect and result in significant declines in valuation; the commencement, costs, effects and outcome of litigation and other legal proceedings and regulatory actions against us or to which we may become subject; loss of, or inability to attract, key personnel; the effects of climate change, severe weather events, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics and other public health crises, acts of war or terrorism, and other external events on our business and the businesses of our clients; the impact of bank failures or adverse developments at other banks and related negative publicity about the banking industry in general on investor and depositor sentiment regarding the stability and liquidity of banks; our success at managing and responding to the risks involved in the foregoing items; and other factors described in our latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") which are available on our website at www.hf-wa.com and on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Moreover, any of the forward-looking statements that we make in this press release or the documents we file with or furnish to the SEC are based only on information then actually known to us and upon management's beliefs and assumptions at the time they are made which may turn out to be wrong because of inaccurate assumptions we might make, because of the factors described above or because of other factors that we cannot foresee. We do not undertake and specifically disclaim any obligation to revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.