SALINAS, Calif., April 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Pacific Valley Bancorp (OTC:PVBK), the sole owner of Pacific Valley Bank, announced its unaudited financial results for the first quarter of 2026. Total assets increased 11.3% over the quarter ending March 31, 2025, to $627.8 million, total loans increased 7.7% to $529.4 million, and total deposits increased 12.0% to $536.6 million. Net income exceeded the quarter ending March 31, 2025, as higher interest income and lower interest expense offset higher non-interest expense.
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS:
- Net income for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, was $1.2 million, an increase of 49.7% or $385 thousand from the quarter ending December 31, 2025. The increase was primarily the result of higher overnight funds interest income, lower deposit interest expense, no loan loss provision, and lower consulting expenses, partially offset by lower loan interest income. Basic earnings per share for the quarter were $0.2, compared to $0.13 per share for the prior quarter in 2025.
- Net interest margin for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, was 3.75%, compared with 3.86% for the quarter ending December 31, 2025, and 3.43% for the quarter ending March 31, 2025. The prior quarter benefited from loan prepayment penalties. The increase over the prior year quarter was due to higher loan interest income, flat deposit interest expense and lower borrowing expenses.
- Gross loans grew by 7.7% or $37.8 million from March 31, 2025 to March 31, 2026, primarily due to increased C&I, agricultural real estate, and CRE loans.
- Non-performing loans to gross loans for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, was 0.04% compared to 0.03% for the quarter ending March 31, 2025.
- The Community Bank Leverage Ratio for the Company’s subsidiary, Pacific Valley Bank, has been consistently strong. As of March 31, 2026, the ratio was 12.51%, compared to 12.74% on December 31, 2025, and 13.27% on March 31, 2025. The well capitalized regulatory requirement for this ratio is 9.00%.
“We are pleased to see an improvement in net income to $1.2 million in the first quarter of 2026 as we maintain growth in loans and deposits over the prior year quarter. Loans increased $38 million and deposits increased by $58 million from March 31, 2025. The cost of deposits for the first quarter of 2026 decreased to 1.82% compared to 1.96% in the fourth quarter of 2025, due to the continuing impact of Federal Reserve rate cuts,” said Anker Fanoe, CEO.
“We are committed to an organic growth strategy for loans and deposits and have made a major investment in personnel to make that happen. There will be ebbs and flows in profitability as the growth materializes, but our goal is to increase long term, sustainable performance. As we grow, our momentum will increase and our efficiency will improve. I am pleased to announce we have completed the relocation of our Salinas branch office on 422 Main Street to a new, expanded location at 1097 South Main Street with a much-improved customer experience,” stated CEO Fanoe.
“Our liquidity position remains strong, as our primary liquidity ratio (cash, deposits held in other banks, and securities as a percentage of total assets) was 14.0% on March 31, 2026, compared to 11.2% for the same month a year ago. As of March 31, 2026, on-balance sheet liquidity totaled $88 million and contingent liquidity, which includes borrowing capacity with the Federal Home Loan Bank, the Federal Reserve Bank, correspondent banks and brokered deposits, was $367 million. Our combined on-balance sheet liquidity and contingent liquidity amount to 142% of our uninsured deposits,” said Steve Leen, Executive Vice President and CFO.
As of March 31, 2026, total assets were $627.8 million. Since March 31, 2025, total assets have increased $63.9 million or 11.3%, primarily because of an increase in loans and overnight funds. Since December 31, 2025, total assets have decreased by $82.4 million or 11.6%, primarily due to a decrease in overnight funds resulting from a large, seasonal, agricultural deposit.
The investment securities portfolio totaled $22.6 million as of March 31, 2026, $23.2 million as of December 31, 2025, and $24.4 million as of March 31, 2025; the unrealized losses in the portfolio were $0.2 million, $0.1 million, and $0.6 million for the comparable periods, respectively. The securities portfolio made up 3.6% of total assets and the unrealized loss was 1.0% of the investment portfolio as of March 31, 2026.
Total gross loans were $529.4 million as of March 31, 2026. Gross loans grew by 7.7% or $37.8 million from March 31, 2025 to March 31, 2026. Increased C&I, agricultural real estate, and CRE loans were the main components of the increase over the quarter ending March 31, 2025. The Company’s loan portfolio decreased by $6.4 million or 1.2% during the quarter ending March 31, 2026 compared to the quarter ending December 31, 2025. Decreased agricultural loans were the main factor for the decline in loans from the quarter ending December 31, 2025.
As of March 31, 2026, total deposits were $536.6 million. Total deposits have increased by $57.5 million or 12.0% compared to the prior year quarter. The increase resulted from higher money market and checking accounts partially offset by lower interest checking accounts.
Shareholders’ equity was $71.2 million on March 31, 2026, representing growth of $13.7 million or 23.7% over a year ago, primarily attributable to the Taylor Fresh Foods capital raise and increased retained earnings from net income. For the Company’s subsidiary, Pacific Valley Bank, equity increased to $78.1 million on March 31, 2026, compared to $76.8 million on December 31, 2025. The Bank is classified as well capitalized with a Community Bank Leverage Ratio of 12.51%, significantly above the regulatory minimum of 9.00%.
Net Interest Income was $5.7 million for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, compared to $4.6 million for the quarter ending March 31, 2025. The increase resulted from higher interest income of $1.0 million and decreased interest expense of $72 thousand. Net interest margin for the first quarter of 2026 was 3.75% compared with 3.43% for the same period in 2025. The increase was the result of higher loan interest income, higher income from overnight funds and lower borrowing expenses.
No provision for credit losses was recorded in the quarters ending March 31, 2026 or March 31, 2025. The lack of provision for those periods reflects the quality of the Company’s loan portfolio. The allowance for credit losses was 1.49% of gross loans as of March 31, 2026, compared to 1.55% as of December 31, 2025. Credit quality remains very strong; non-performing loans to gross loans as of March 31, 2026, was 0.04% compared to 0.03% as of March …