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Kate Ashley

Vice President and Equity Research Analyst at KBW

Kate Ashley is a Vice President and Equity Research Analyst at KBW (Keefe, Bruyette & Woods), specializing in U.S. regional and community banks. She covers institutions such as Regions Financial, Fifth Third Bancorp, Comerica, and Hancock Whitney, delivering thorough analysis and industry forecasts backed by market data. Ashley joined KBW in the early 2020s after beginning her career at Wells Fargo Securities, where she gained experience in bank sector coverage and credit research. She is a registered FINRA representative holding the Series 7 and Series 63 securities licenses, and has been recognized for her accuracy and depth of insight, earning favorable ratings for her research calls on platforms like TipRanks.

Kate Ashley's questions to WSFS FINANCIAL (WSFS) leadership

Kate Ashley's questions to WSFS FINANCIAL (WSFS) leadership • Q3 2024

Question

Speaking on behalf of Kelly, Kate Ashley from KBW asked for clarity on potential future net charge-offs (NCOs) given the migration of some commercial loans to nonperforming asset (NPA) status, especially in light of the company lowering its full-year NCO guidance.

Answer

EVP and CFO David Burg clarified that the uptick in credit metrics was driven by a few previously identified and monitored problem loans, not systemic issues. He specified that the quarter's net charge-offs were primarily from two C&I loans. Burg stated that because these developments were anticipated and are now working through the cycle, the company feels comfortable reducing its full-year NCO guidance to the low end of the previous range.

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Kate Ashley's questions to National Bank Holdings (NBHC) leadership

Kate Ashley's questions to National Bank Holdings (NBHC) leadership • Q3 2024

Question

Kate Ashley, on behalf of Kelly Motta, inquired about the most promising opportunities for loan growth, categorized by loan type and geographic region.

Answer

President Aldis Birkans explained that the current loan pipeline is highly diversified across the bank's geographic footprint and its various business lines, from middle market to specialty lending. He emphasized that credit quality remains the paramount consideration for new loan pull-through and that no single category is currently a dominant driver of growth.

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