Shares of Lakeland Bancorp Inc. fell nearly 8% Thursday after the Oak Ridge, N.J., company reported second-quarter earnings that missed analysts' expectations.
Though the company reported a $4.6 million profit in the quarter, up 19% over the same period last year, its earnings per share of 18 cents fell a penny short of analysts' estimates, according to a research note from Frank Schiraldi, an analyst at Sandler O'Neill & Partners LP.
Schiraldi wrote in his research note that the loan-loss provision of $5.4 million for the quarter was higher than anticipated. He also noted that the earnings growth was the largely the result of a $444,000 increase in income from securities gains, not loan growth. Total loans have declined by roughly 1.5% since the end of 2010, to $1.98 billion.
Schiraldi is maintaining his full-year estimates of 76 cents for 2011, but said he is lowering his full-year estimates for 2012 by two cents, to 82 cents, "due to slightly lower loan-growth rates than previously modeled." Lakeland's shares closed Thursday at $9.91.
