Executive Summary

SYBT delivered record Q4 2024 net income of $31.7M and diluted EPS of $1.07, with net interest margin (NIM) expanding to 3.44% and total revenue (non-GAAP) of $93.6M; EPS and revenue rose both year over year (YoY) and quarter over quarter (QoQ) .
Consensus expectations were exceeded: EPS beat by $0.08 (consensus $0.99) and revenue beat by ~$2.56M (consensus $91.0M); S&P Global consensus was unavailable at request time, so external sources are cited .
Loan growth remained robust (+$242M QoQ; +$749M YoY to $6.52B) and deposits increased $440M QoQ (+$496M YoY), supporting NIM expansion despite deposit mix shifting to higher-cost funding .
Management signaled continued NIM expansion into 2025 and loan growth moderating to historical levels, while credit metrics remained solid (NPLs 0.34%, ACL/Loans 1.33%) .
Catalysts: sustained NIM tailwind, organic loan/deposit growth across markets (notably Indianapolis surpassing $1B loans), and disciplined funding mix; watch for deposit cost pressure and marketing/OpEx trends .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- Net interest income grew 13% YoY to $70.0M and NIM expanded 19 bps YoY to 3.44% (11 bps QoQ), driven by loan growth and improved earning asset yields: “net interest margin expanded... boosted by substantial loan growth, higher interest earning asset yields and a reduction in our cost of funds” .
- Broad-based loan growth (+$242M QoQ; +$749M YoY) across categories and markets, including Indianapolis surpassing $1.0B in loans; loan yield reached 6.10% (+31 bps YoY) .
- Deposits grew $440M QoQ and $496M YoY, with interest-bearing balances up $492M QoQ (+589M YoY) supporting funding stability across markets for a second consecutive quarter .
What Went Wrong
- Efficiency ratio worsened QoQ (55.21% vs 53.92%), reflecting higher compensation/benefits and marketing spend; total non-interest expenses rose 7% QoQ and 3% YoY .
- Non-interest income fell 4% YoY; “Other” declined due to lapping non-recurring items in 4Q23 (Visa Class B gain, OREO sale gain, insurance captive income, swap fees) .
- Deposit mix continued shifting from non-interest-bearing to higher-cost deposits (NIB down $93M YoY), contributing to deposit interest expense growth; management noted potential cost-of-funds pressure ahead .

Financial Results

Metric	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Total Revenue (Non-GAAP) ($MM)	$86.5	$89.9	$93.6
Net Interest Income ($MM)	$62.0	$65.0	$69.97
Non-Interest Income ($MM)	$24.42	$24.80	$23.51
Provision for Credit Losses ($MM)	$6.05	$4.33	$2.68
Non-Interest Expenses ($MM)	$50.01	$48.45	$51.66
Net Income ($MM)	$23.94	$29.36	$31.69
Diluted EPS ($)	$0.82	$1.00	$1.07
Net Interest Margin (%)	3.25%	3.33%	3.44%
Efficiency Ratio (%)	57.80%	53.92%	55.21%
ROAA (Annualized, %)	1.17%	1.39%	1.45%
ROAE (Annualized, %)	11.62%	12.83%	13.45%

Non-Interest Income Detail ($MM)	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Wealth Mgmt & Trust	$10.10	$10.93	$10.35
Deposit Service Charges	$2.24	$2.31	$2.28
Card Income	$5.37	$5.08	$5.39
Treasury Mgmt Fees	$2.53	$2.94	$2.68
Mortgage Banking	$0.82	$1.11	$0.78
Other	$2.06	$0.93	$0.48

Balance & Credit KPIs	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Loans ($MM)	$5,771	$6,278	$6,520
Total Deposits ($MM)	$6,671	$6,726	$7,166
NIB Deposits ($MM)	$1,549	$1,508	$1,456
Interest-Bearing Deposits ($MM)	$5,122	$5,218	$5,710
NPLs / Loans (%)	0.33%	0.27%	0.34%
ACL / Loans (%)	1.38%	1.36%	1.33%
Net Charge-offs ($000)	$(4,472)	$(1,137)	$(625)

Loan Segmentation ($MM)	Dec 31, 2023	Sep 30, 2024	Dec 31, 2024
CRE – Non-owner Occupied	$1,561.7	$1,686.4	$1,835.9
CRE – Owner Occupied	$907.4	$949.5	$1,002.9
Commercial & Industrial	$1,307.1	$1,379.3	$1,438.7
Resi RE – Owner Occupied	$708.9	$783.3	$805.1
Resi RE – Non-owner	$358.7	$381.1	$382.7
Construction & Land Dev.	$531.3	$674.9	$623.0
HELOC	$211.4	$236.8	$247.4
Consumer	$145.3	$143.7	$144.6
Leases	$15.5	$16.8	$15.5
Credit Cards	$23.6	$26.3	$24.5

Consensus vs Actual	Consensus	Actual	Surprise
EPS ($)	$0.99	$1.07	+$0.08
Revenue ($MM)	$91.0	$93.56	+$2.56

Note: S&P Global consensus was unavailable due to request limits at query time; external sources are cited for consensus values.

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Net Interest Margin (directional)	2025	Improving into 2H24 (implicit from Q2/Q3 commentary)	Anticipates further NIM expansion into 2025 as earning asset yields and growth offset cost-of-funds pressure	Raised (directional)
Loan Growth (organic)	2025	Strong double-digit in 2024	Growth moderating toward historical levels	Lowered (directional)
Deposit Trends	Near term	Continued growth across markets; mix shift to higher-cost deposits	Expects deposit growth to continue; acknowledges potential cost-of-funds pressure	Maintained (directional)
Dividend	Q4 2024	$0.30/share (Q2)	$0.31/share declared Nov 20, 2024, paid Dec 31, 2024	Raised
Capital Ratios	Q4 2024	Well-capitalized	Well-capitalized; equity/assets 10.61%, TCE/TA 8.44%	Maintained

No numeric ranges for revenue, margins, OpEx, OI&E, or tax rate were provided; commentary was directional.

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

No full Q4 2024 earnings call transcript could be located in our document catalog or public IR sources; MarketBeat lists a call date/time, but transcript text was unavailable at the time of research . Themes below reflect management commentary in quarterly press releases.

Topic	Q2 2024 (Prev Mentions)	Q3 2024 (Prev Mentions)	Q4 2024 (Current Period)	Trend
Net Interest Margin	First expansion in six quarters; +6 bps QoQ to 3.26%	+7 bps QoQ to 3.33%; slowing deposit cost expansion	+11 bps QoQ to 3.44%; expects expansion into 2025	Improving
Loan Demand & Production	Record loan growth across all categories; +$221M QoQ	Broad-based growth; +$207M QoQ	Broad-based growth; +$242M QoQ; yield 6.10%	Strong, moderating in 2025
Deposit Mix & Costs	Shift to higher-cost deposits; interest-bearing up; NIB down	Continued mix shift; interest-bearing up; time/MM growth	Interest-bearing +$492M QoQ; recognizes potential cost-of-funds pressure	Higher-cost mix persists
Credit Quality & CECL	Net recoveries YTD; ACL/Loans 1.35%	Provision $4.3M; traditional metrics strong	Provision $2.7M; NPLs 0.34%; ACL/Loans 1.33%	Stable
Non-Interest Income	WM&T record, Treasury Mgmt record; other down due to insurance captive exit	WM&T +9%; Treasury Mgmt +12%	WM&T +2%; Treasury Mgmt +6%; “Other” down on lapping non-recurring	Mixed
Expenses & Efficiency	OpEx +7% YoY; investments in tech/compliance	OpEx +4% YoY; tech/processing up; “Other” down	OpEx +3% YoY; compensation/marketing up; efficiency ratio worse QoQ	Cost pressure
Regional/Market	Diversified footprint; 72 branches	72 branches; deposits up	Indianapolis surpassed $1B loans; deposits up across all markets	Positive footprint
Regulatory/Capital	Well-capitalized, ratios up	Well-capitalized	Well-capitalized; equity/assets 10.61%; TCE/TA 8.44%	Strong

Management Commentary

“We delivered record fourth quarter and full year 2024 operating results, reflecting substantial loan growth, strong revenue generation and net interest margin expansion… our Indianapolis market… surpassed $1.00 billion in loans for the first time during the quarter.” — Chairman & CEO Ja Hillebrand .
“Deposit balances grew nicely during the fourth quarter… We continue to focus on organic growth while improving our funding position, which contributed to net interest margin expansion for the third consecutive linked quarter… We anticipate this expansion to continue into 2025.” — Hillebrand .
“We anticipate overall [loan] growth moderating towards historical levels in 2025.” — Hillebrand .

Q&A Highlights

A Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was not available in our document catalog or IR sources at research time; MarketBeat lists a call time (Jan 22, 2025, 7:30am ET), but transcript text was unavailable . As a result, Q&A themes and guidance clarifications cannot be cited.

Estimates Context

EPS and revenue beat consensus: EPS $1.07 vs $0.99 (+$0.08), revenue $93.56M vs $91.0M (+2.8%–3.0%). S&P Global consensus could not be retrieved due to request limits; external sources (MarketBeat and Zacks/Yahoo) are cited for consensus values .
Implications: Estimate revisions likely trend upward near term on NIM trajectory and loan growth, but may be tempered by management’s 2025 loan growth moderation and deposit cost mix commentary .

Key Takeaways for Investors

NIM tailwind intact: third consecutive linked-quarter expansion to 3.44% with management expecting continued improvement into 2025; watch deposit cost trajectory and FHLB usage mix .
Growth durable but normalizing: broad-based loan growth (+$242M QoQ; +$749M YoY) and deposit inflows (+$440M QoQ; +$496M YoY) underpin earnings, but management signals 2025 loan growth moderation .
Expense vigilance: efficiency ratio worsened QoQ as compensation and marketing rose; monitor OpEx discipline versus revenue growth to sustain operating leverage .
Credit steady: NPLs 0.34% and ACL/Loans 1.33% with reduced provision QoQ; traditional metrics strong, a positive backdrop for earnings resilience .
WM&T and fee momentum: stable WM&T income and treasury management growth offset lapping of non-recurring items; “Other” normalizing from 4Q23 one-offs .
Capital and dividend: well-capitalized with equity/assets 10.61% and TCE/TA 8.44%; dividend raised to $0.31/share and paid Dec 31, 2024 .
Trading setup: A clear beat vs consensus and NIM expansion narrative are positive near-term catalysts; sensitivity to rate path and deposit costs remains the key risk/revision driver .

Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. (SYBT)·Q4 2024 Earnings Summary