Executive Summary

Q4 delivered steady operating momentum: net interest margin expanded to 3.09% (+4 bps q/q; +44 bps y/y) and total revenue rose to $7.81M, while EPS eased to $0.45 (from $0.50 in Q3) on a higher effective tax rate with discrete items; asset quality remained strong (NPAs 0.05% of assets) .
Net interest income increased to $7.0M, reflecting continued benefits from 2023’s balance sheet repositioning and loan growth; noninterest expense was flat sequentially and down y/y on lower salaries/benefits, occupancy, and professional fees .
Capital remained solid (TCE 8.01%); sequential book value per share declined to $22.41 on OCI from higher rates and dividends; no brokered deposits or FHLB advances outstanding; reciprocal deposits sold off-balance sheet increased to $74.1M .
Management expects NIM to improve in 2025 as Fed cuts reduce deposit costs while earning asset yields reprice higher; directional positives on cost of deposits and efficiency should be 2025 catalysts, alongside stable credit metrics .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

Margin expansion and core revenue: NIM rose to 3.09% in Q4 from 3.05% in Q3 (and 2.65% a year ago); tax-equivalent NII grew to $7.0M (+14% y/y) on a more favorable asset mix and loan growth .
Credit quality: NPAs fell to $0.5M (0.05% of assets) with a small negative provision (−$48K), reflecting improved economic forecasts; ACL remained 1.22% of loans .
Cost discipline: Noninterest expense held at ~$5.5M q/q and declined y/y on lower compensation, occupancy/equipment, and professional fees; efficiency ratio improved to 69.86% from 71.83% in Q3 .
Management tone: “Our fourth quarter and full year results reflect solid revenue growth, strong asset quality, and controlled expenses… We remain optimistic that our net interest margin will continue to improve in 2025…” — David A. Hedges, President & CEO .

What Went Wrong

Sequential EPS dip: EPS declined to $0.45 from $0.50 as the effective tax rate rose to 34.73% (vs. 23.46% in Q3) due to discrete items; excluding discrete items, ETR would have been 21.55% (Q3: 18.96%) .
Balance sheet marks hit book value: Book value/share fell to $22.41 (from $24.14 in Q3) driven by $6.7M of OCI losses as rates rose, plus dividends; TCE declined to 8.01% from 8.52% .
Modest loan contraction q/q: Period-end loans slipped to $564.0M (from $565.7M in Q3); recall Q3 included ~$14.9M payoffs tied to one relationship, which also reduced non-core funding costs then; Q4 deposits were modestly lower q/q and reciprocal deposits sold off-balance sheet rose to $74.1M .

Financial Results

Core P&L vs prior periods and estimates

Metric	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024	Q4 2024 Consensus
Total Revenue ($M)	$0.63	$7.64	$7.81	N/A (S&P Global consensus unavailable)
Net Interest Income (GAAP) ($M)	$6.06	$6.79	$6.97	N/A
Noninterest Income ($M)	$(5.43)	$0.85	$0.85	N/A
Provision for Credit Losses ($M)	$0.33	$(0.13)	$(0.05)	N/A
Noninterest Expense ($M)	$5.80	$5.50	$5.47	N/A
Diluted EPS ($)	$(1.14)	$0.50	$0.45	N/A
Net Interest Margin (TE, %)	2.65%	3.05%	3.09%	N/A
Efficiency Ratio (%)	800.41%	71.83%	69.86%	N/A
Note: Wall Street consensus from S&P Global was unavailable due to data access limits; therefore, no estimate comparisons are shown.

Balance Sheet and Asset Quality KPIs

KPI	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Avg Loans ($M)	$550.94	$571.65	$567.63
Period-end Loans ($M)	$557.29	$565.70	$564.02
Period-end Deposits ($M)	$896.24	$901.72	$895.82
Total Assets ($M, period-end)	$975.26	$990.14	$977.32
NPAs ($M)	$0.91	$0.78	$0.50
NPAs / Total Assets (%)	0.09%	0.08%	0.05%
ACL / Loans (%)	1.23%	1.22%	1.22%
TCE Ratio (%)	7.84%	8.52%	8.01%
Book Value/Share ($)	$21.90	$24.14	$22.41
Reciprocal Deposits Sold Off-B/S ($M)	$59.0	$37.8	$74.1
Brokered Deposits / FHLB Advances	None	None	None

Segment breakdown: Not applicable (community bank reporting; press releases present consolidated results) .

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance/Update	Change
Net Interest Margin	2025 outlook	None	“We remain optimistic that our net interest margin will continue to improve in 2025 as recent cuts in the federal funds rate should reduce our cost of deposits and still allow our earning asset yields to improve as loans and securities re-price.”	Positive directional
Deposit Costs	2025 outlook	None	Quarterly cost of deposits decreased q/q (ex-Q1) for the first time since Q3’22; rate cuts “should reduce our cost of deposits”	Improving trajectory
Operating Expenses	2025	None	Closing Corner Village branch by year-end 2024 “should provide additional cost savings beginning in 2025”	Cost savings expected
Dividend	Q4 2024	$0.27 declared in prior quarters	$0.27 per share declared for Q4 2024 (paid Dec 26, 2024)	Maintained
Effective Tax Rate	Near-term	None	Q4 ETR 34.73% (incl. discrete items); excluding discrete items, Q4 ~21.55%, Q3 ~18.96% (context vs. normalized)	Informational (no formal guidance)

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Note: No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was found in the filings set. Themes below reflect management commentary from Q2, Q3, and Q4 disclosures.

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q2 2024)	Previous Mentions (Q3 2024)	Current Period (Q4 2024)	Trend
Net Interest Margin	NIM improved to 3.06% on loan growth, favorable mix, improved yields	NIM at 3.05%; improvement vs. 3Q23 on loan growth and asset mix	NIM up to 3.09%; optimistic for continued improvement in 2025	Upward bias
Deposit Costs	Challenging rate backdrop; stable/improving margin	Paid down high-cost non-core funding after $14.9M payoff	Quarterly cost of deposits declined; cuts should further reduce costs	Easing
Loan Growth	Avg loans +12% y/y; broad-based category growth	Solid y/y growth; one $14.9M payoff in Q3	Avg loans +3% y/y; period-end slightly down q/q	Moderating q/q
Asset Quality	NPAs 0.08% of assets	NPAs 0.08%; negative provision	NPAs 0.05%; negative provision	Strong/stable
Capital & OCI Sensitivity	Book value up q/q; OCI small loss	Book value rose on lower rates/OCI gains	Book value down on higher rates/OCI losses; TCE still 8.01%	Rate-sensitive
Efficiency/Branch Network	Expense declines (occupancy)	Closing Corner Village branch to boost efficiency	Efficiency ratio improved to 69.86%	Improving

Management Commentary

“Our fourth quarter and full year results reflect solid revenue growth, strong asset quality, and controlled expenses… We remain optimistic that our net interest margin will continue to improve in 2025 as recent cuts in the federal funds rate should reduce our cost of deposits and still allow our earning asset yields to improve as loans and securities re-price.” — David A. Hedges, President & CEO .
On expenses and footprint: “We are closing our Corner Village branch by year end, which should provide additional cost savings beginning in 2025.” .
Tax context: Q4’s higher ETR included discrete items; excluding them, normalized ETR would have been ~21.55% (Q3: ~18.96%), with TE influenced by municipal securities, BOLI, and NMTCs .

Q&A Highlights

No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was available in the filings set; no Q&A to summarize.

Estimates Context

S&P Global consensus estimates for Q4 2024 EPS and revenue were unavailable due to data access limits at the time of analysis; we therefore cannot present beats/misses vs Street for this quarter.

Key Takeaways for Investors

NIM expansion is intact and likely to continue into 2025 as deposit costs ease and asset yields reprice; this is a core positive catalyst for earnings power .
Credit remains a non-issue: NPAs at 0.05% of assets and negative provisioning support benign credit cost assumptions near term .
Expense discipline plus branch consolidation point to incremental efficiency gains; Q4 efficiency improved to ~70% .
Capital solid with TCE 8.01%, but book value is sensitive to rate-driven AFS marks; rate path is a swing factor for tangible equity and optics .
Balance sheet funding is conservative (no brokered, no FHLB), though reciprocal deposits sold off-balance sheet increased; monitor cost and stability dynamics as rates evolve .
Near-term EPS may be influenced by tax-rate volatility (discrete items); normalized ETR commentary suggests a lower underlying rate than Q4’s headline .
Dividend maintained at $0.27/share; with improving core earnings trajectory, the payout looks supported, barring adverse rate/credit shocks .

Appendix: Prior-Quarter Context

Q3 2024: EPS $0.50; NIM 3.05%; negative provision; announced branch closure for 2025 savings; book value benefited from OCI gains on lower rates .
Q2 2024: EPS $0.50; NIM 3.06%; expenses declined on occupancy; strong loan growth and stable credit .

AUBURN NATIONAL BANCORPORATION, INC (AUBN)·Q4 2024 Earnings Summary