Executive Summary

Q4 2024 delivered a clean beat on internal momentum: diluted EPS rose to $0.53 from $0.41 in Q3 and $0.28 in Q4 2023, driven by a modestly higher net interest income, a net credit for credit losses, steadier noninterest income mix, and no securities losses; NIM was stable at 3.30% (+1 bp q/q) .
Credit was a tailwind: a $0.5M net credit for credit losses (versus a $1.2M provision in Q3 2024 and $1.0M in Q4 2023) plus near-zero net charge-offs ($14K) supported earnings quality, while ACL/loans remained solid at 1.06% and NPLs/loans improved q/q to 1.26% .
Balance sheet: loans were essentially flat q/q (+$3.1M), deposits fell 2.0% q/q on lower brokered balances (-$21.0M), and liquidity coverage remained ample at 171% of uninsured deposits and 229% of uninsured & uncollateralized deposits; quarterly dividend maintained at $0.28 payable Feb 14, 2025 .
Estimate context: S&P Global consensus for Q4 2024 EPS and revenue was unavailable at the time of analysis; we cannot quantify a beat/miss versus Street. This may limit near-term stock reaction to company-specific drivers (credit tailwinds, liquidity comfort, and stable NIM) rather than headline estimate deltas [GetEstimates error].

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- Credit provision swung to a credit of $0.53M, reflecting lower expected net charge-offs and improved historical loss experience; net charge-offs were negligible at $14K versus $1.24M in Q3 .
- NIM stability and slight sequential improvement (3.30% vs 3.29% in Q3) with higher average earning assets and lower cost of interest-bearing liabilities helped lift net interest income q/q by $317K .
- Fee momentum in wealth and brokerage: trust revenue grew q/q and y/y; brokerage/insurance increased on higher sales; mortgage gains rose on higher volume .
What Went Wrong
- Total deposits fell 2.0% q/q to $2.094B, partly from strategy to reduce brokered deposits (-$21.0M), though average deposits rose during the quarter; overall deposits remain higher y/y .
- Noninterest income was lower y/y due to the absence of a prior-year $2.1M one-time BOLI enhancement; excluding that, the underlying BOLI earnings grew with higher balances .
- Nonperforming assets remain elevated versus last year (0.92% of assets vs 0.75% in Q4 2023), reflecting reclassification of certain construction/land loans; office CRE exposure equals 5.4% of loans with two nonaccruals totaling $3.1M (no specific allowance) .

Financial Results

Metric	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Interest & Dividend Income ($M)	$30.236	$33.087	$33.329
Interest Expense ($M)	$10.642	$12.931	$12.856
Net Interest Income ($M)	$19.594	$20.156	$20.473
(Credit) Provision for Credit Losses ($M)	$0.951	$1.207	$(0.531)
Noninterest Income ($M)	$8.720	$7.133	$7.547
Securities Gains/Losses ($M)	$(3.042)	$0.000	$0.000
Noninterest Expense ($M)	$18.399	$18.269	$18.430
Pre-tax Income ($M)	$5.922	$7.813	$10.121
Income Tax Provision ($M)	$1.661	$1.448	$1.947
Net Income ($M)	$4.261	$6.365	$8.174
Diluted EPS ($)	$0.28	$0.41	$0.53
Net Interest Margin (%)	3.31%	3.29%	3.30%
ROAA (annualized, %)	0.69%	—	1.24%
ROAE (annualized, %)	7.03%	—	11.87%
Effective Tax Rate (%)	28.0%	18.5%	19.2%

Noninterest Income Breakdown ($K)

Category	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Trust revenue	1,913	1,946	2,071
Brokerage & insurance	486	523	682
Service charges	1,446	1,546	1,531
Debit interchange	1,045	1,103	1,071
Gains on loan sales	273	360	372
Loan servicing fees, net	136	74	215
BOLI increase	2,253	458	458
Other noninterest income	1,168	1,123	1,147
Total noninterest income	8,720	7,133	7,547

Selected Balance Sheet & Credit KPIs

KPI	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Total Assets ($B)	$2.516	$2.671	$2.611
Gross Loans ($B)	$1.848	$1.893	$1.896
Loans, Net ($B)	$1.829	$1.872	$1.876
Deposits ($B)	$2.015	$2.136	$2.094
Brokered Deposits ($M)	$64.369	$45.051	$24.021
NPLs / Total Loans (%)	0.99%	1.29%	1.26%
NPAs / Assets (%)	0.75%	0.92%	0.92%
ACL / Loans (%)	1.04%	1.08%	1.06%
Uninsured & Uncollateralized Deposits (% of total)	21.7%	21.9%	22.3%
Liquidity vs Uninsured Deposits (%)	246.8% (u&u)	223.2% (u&u)	229.4% (u&u), 170.7% (uninsured)
Trust AUM ($B)	$1.188	$1.359	$1.348

Notes: u&u = uninsured and uncollateralized.

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Quarterly Dividend/Share	Q1 2025	$0.28	$0.28	Maintained
Revenue/Margins/OpEx/Tax	—	Not provided	Not provided	—

No formal quantitative guidance was issued for revenue, margins, expenses, or tax rate in the Q4 materials .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was available in our document set; themes below reflect press release disclosures and supplemental schedules.

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q2 & Q3 2024)	Current Period (Q4 2024)	Trend
Net Interest Margin	3.29% in Q3; 3.26–3.29% range earlier in 2024 per quarterly table	3.30% with +1 bp q/q; spread +4 bps q/q as funding costs fell	Stabilizing/slight improvement
Credit Costs	Provision of $0.565M in Q2; $1.207M in Q3 with office CRE partial charge-off	Net credit $(0.531)M; net charge-offs ~$14K; ACL/loans 1.06%	Improving
Office CRE Exposure	Partial charge-off of $640K in Q3; two office loans on nonaccrual	Office CRE = 5.4% of loans; two nonaccruals $3.1M; no specific allowance	Stable risk posture
Deposits & Mix	Average deposits rising; brokered used tactically	Period-end deposits down 2% q/q; brokered cut by $21M; average deposits +8.1% (annualized) q/q	Managing down brokered
Liquidity	Strong contingent liquidity	Liquidity equal to 171% of uninsured deposits and 229% of u&u deposits	Strong/steady
Fee Businesses	Wealth/Interchange steady	Trust +$125K q/q; brokerage/insurance +$159K q/q; loan servicing improved	Improving

Management Commentary

“The net interest margin was 3.30% in the fourth quarter 2024 as compared to 3.29% in the third quarter 2024 and 3.31% in the fourth quarter 2023.” (Press release) .
“For the quarter ended December 31, 2024, there was a credit for credit losses (a reduction in expense) of $531,000... Net charge-offs totaled $14,000 in the fourth quarter 2024 as compared to $1,237,000 in the third quarter 2024.” (Press release) .
“Deposits totaled $2,093,909,000 at December 31, 2024, down $41,970,000 (2.0%) from $2,135,879,000 at September 30, 2024, including a decrease in brokered deposits of $21,030,000.” (Press release) .
“At December 31, 2024, available funding from [liquidity] sources totaled 170.7% of uninsured deposits, and 229.4% of uninsured and uncollateralized deposits.” (Press release) .
“Citizens & Northern Corporation’s Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.28 per share [payable Feb. 14, 2025].” (Press release) .

Q&A Highlights

No earnings call transcript was available; therefore, Q&A highlights and tone shifts versus prior quarters cannot be assessed from primary sources.

Estimates Context

S&P Global (Capital IQ) consensus for Q4 2024 EPS and revenue was unavailable due to data access limits at the time of analysis, so we cannot provide a beat/miss versus Street. If/when available, compare actual diluted EPS of $0.53 and total revenue proxy (Net Interest Income + Noninterest Income) of $28.020M for Q4 2024 to consensus to quantify revisions risk [GetEstimates error].
Given the quarter’s composition (NIM stable, credit provision credit, clean securities line), estimate revisions—if any—would most likely reflect lower expected credit costs and slightly firmer spread income.

Key Takeaways for Investors

Quality of earnings improved: strong sequential EPS growth to $0.53 with tailwinds from a net credit to provision and no securities losses; NIM steady at 3.30% provides baseline earnings resilience .
Credit risk manageable: office CRE exposure is 5.4% of loans with limited identified problem credits; NPLs/loans improved q/q to 1.26% and ACL coverage remains healthy at 1.06% .
Funding strategy prudent: reduced reliance on brokered deposits drove a q/q deposit decline, but average deposits rose and liquidity coverage of uninsured deposits is robust (171% of uninsured; 229% of u&u) .
Fee engines gaining traction: trust and brokerage/insurance revenues rose, while mortgage banking activity improved sequentially, diversifying revenue streams .
Dividend maintained at $0.28, underscoring capital and earnings stability; repurchase program remains largely untapped (724K shares authorized remaining) .
Watch list for 1H 2025: funding costs path vs asset yields, any incremental credit migration in CRE (especially office), deposit flows as brokered balances normalize, and wealth/fee momentum as markets evolve .
Trading setup: absent published sell-side estimates, narrative catalysts skew to positive (credit, liquidity, fee mix); a hawkish rate backdrop or CRE headlines are the principal risk to multiple.

References: All figures and statements are sourced from the Q4 2024 8-K press release and supplemental financials, including Exhibits 99.1 and 99.2, dated January 23, 2025 . S&P Global consensus data were not available at the time of analysis due to access limits (GetEstimates error).

CITIZENS & NORTHERN CORP (CZNC)·Q4 2024 Earnings Summary