Citizens Community to enter new Wisconsin market with latest acquisition

Citizens Community Bancorp in Eau Claire, Wis., has agreed to buy F. & M. Bancorp of Tomah in Wisconsin.

The $975 billion-asset Citizens said in a press release Tuesday that it will pay $21.6 million in cash and stock for the $195 million-asset parent of F&M Bank. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

F&M Bank, founded in 1911, has $149 million in deposits and $138 million in loans.

“Our deeper product offerings and increased lending capacity will allow us to better serve our new clients in and around the city of Tomah,” Stephen Bianchi, Citizens’ president and CEO, said in the release. “This transaction … further improves our loan and deposit compositions.”

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Citizens said it expects the deal to be immediately accretive to earnings. It should take three years for Citizens to earn back any dilution to its tangible book value.

Citizens said it expects to cut about $1.9 million in annual noninterest expenses.

Peter Reichardt, F&M Bank’s CEO, will lead Citizens’ business activities in the Tomah market.

FIG Partners and Briggs & Morgan advised Citizens. Oak Ridge Financial Services Group and Godfrey & Kahn advised F&M.

It is the second bank deal this week involving a Wisconsin seller. Greenwoods Financial Group in Lake Mills, Wis., announced Monday it had agreed to buy Fox River Financial in Burlington, Wis.