Lakeland Bancorp in Oak Ridge, N.J., has agreed to buy Highlands Bancorp in Vernon, N.J.
The $5.5 billion-asset Lakeland said in a press release Thursday that it will pay $56.7 million in stock for the $488 million-asset Highlands. The deal is expected to close early next year.
Lakeland said it expects the transaction to be about 4% accretive to its 2019 earnings per share. It should take less than two years to earn back the expected 1.5% dilution to Lakeland’s tangible book value.
“We are delighted to be … expanding Lakeland’s presence in Sussex, Passaic and Morris counties,” Thomas J. Shara, Lakeland’s president and CEO, said in the release. “Both banks share a focus on community banking and providing the highest level of service to our customers.”
Highland has $427 million in loans and $404 million in deposits.
Sandler O’Neill and Lowenstein Sandler advised Lakeland. FIG Partners and Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf advised Highlands.
