finwood acquisition which is a deal that we're very excited about after that we'll open it up for questions the second quarter was another active quarter as we remain focused on post integration efforts related to the westfield acquisition and successfully converted bank financial systems our second quarter operating results were strong and we're very pleased with our performance adjusted net income for the period was a record eighty three point nine million dollars or 80 cents per share with an adjusted return on assets of 1.5 percent and an adjusted return on tangible common equity of 19.7 percent. These adjusted earnings per share represent an 8 percent increase over the second quarter of 2025 and they were driven by increases in earning assets from a combination of organic loan growth and our net interest margin was stable at a lower funding costs offset a decline in loan accretion income. Assuming no significant changes in interest rates, we expect our margin to remain stable over the near term. Lone growth of the quarter was 7% on an annualized basis and reflected continued momentum across the portfolio with C&I, Agile, and Summit being the primary drivers of our increase in balances. Loan originations increased 23% over the first quarter and advanced states pipelines remain strong heading into the back half of the year we expect loan production to remain healthy and contribute to solid loan growth in the third quarter second quarter adjusted the income was below our expectations after a very strong first quarter lower foreign exchange swap income and investment banking fees led to a decline in total non-interest income compared to the linked quarter while results in these business lines can vary from quarter to quarter we anticipate a rebound in a third quarter conversely adjusted non-interest expenses were materially lower than the linked quarter driven by lower commission expense payroll taxes and acquisition related synergies as of June 30th virtually all the expected Westfield cost reductions have been realized while savings related to the bank financial acquisition will gradually phase in over the course of the third quarter with full savings expected by quarter end. Asset quality was stable for the quarter with net charge-offs declining by 15 basis points to 0.20% of total loans. Capital levels remain strong with tangible common equity increasing to 8.2% and tangible look value increasing 3% from the linked quarter to $16.64. During the quarter as we focus on on integrating recent acquisitions and preparing for the acquisition of Fenward. Now, I'll turn the call over to Jamie to discuss our second quarter results in greater detail.

Good morning, everyone. Slides five, six, and seven provide a summary of our most recent financial results. The second quarter was another outstanding quarter, highlighted by strong earnings, 7% loan growth, a solid net interest margin, and positive credit. Our net interest margin remains very strong at 3.98%. Deposit costs declined 6 basis points from the linked quarter, while asset yields decreased 7 basis points due to lower accretion income. Loan balances increased $240 million, or 7% on an annualized basis. Growth was broad-based, with CNI, Summit, and Agile all having strong quarters. Deposit balances increased $41 million due primarily to a seasonal influx in public funds and higher interest-bearing deposits. We maintain 21% of our total balances in non-interest-bearing accounts and remain focused on growing lower-cost deposit balances. Turning to the income statement, despite a decrease from the first quarter, second quarter fee income was solid, led by the leasing and foreign exchange business lines, while non-interest expenses declined from the length quarter due to lower incentive-based compensation. Our ACL coverage increased two basis points during the quarter to 1.38%, so we recorded $8.2 million of provision expense during the period, which was driven primarily by net charge-offs and loan growth. Overall, asset quality trends were positive. Net charge-offs declined 15 basis points to 20 basis points of loans on an annualized basis, while NPAs and classified assets also declined during the period. From a capital standpoint, our ratios are in excess of both internal and regulatory targets. Tangible book value increased to $16.64, while our TCE ratio increased to 8.2%. Slide 9 reconciles our gap earnings to adjusted earnings, highlighting items that we believe are important to understanding our quarterly performance. Adjusted net income was $83.9 million, or $0.80 per share for the quarter. Non-interest income was adjusted for losses on investment securities and $2.2 million of acquisition-related items. Non-interest expense adjustments exclude the impact of acquisition costs, tax credit, investment amortization, and other expenses not expected to recur. As depicted on slide 10, these adjusted earnings equate to a return on average assets of 1.5%, a return on average tangible common equity of 20%, and a post-tax pre-provision ROA of over 2%. Turning to slides 11 and 12, net interest margin decreased one basis point from the length quarter to 3.98%. The core margin remains very strong, with a slight decline from the length quarter driven by a five basis point decline in loan accretion, which was impacted by low prepayment rates by our acquired mortgage loans, plus declined six basis points from the length quarter, partially offsetting the impact of lower asset yields. 14 illustrates our current loan mix and balance changes compared to the length quarter. Loan balances increased 7% on an annualized basis with growth across most of the portfolio highlighted by C&I, Summit, and seasonal growth from Agile. Slide 16 depicts our NDFI exposure. As you can see, our total NDFI balances are approximately 3% of our total loan book, and all NDFI loans were pass rated at the end of the second quarter. The majority of our NDFI lending is concentrated in loans to REITs, which we believe further mitigates our risk. Slide 17 depicts our average deposit mix as well as a progression of average deposits from the length quarter. In total, average deposit balances increased $41 million during the quarter driven by a seasonal influx of public funds and growth in interest-bearing demand accounts. These increases were offset by declines in retail time deposits and brokered CDs. Absent the decline in brokered CDs, average deposits increased $169 million from the first quarter. Slide 19 highlights our non-interest income. Total adjusted fee income was $72 million with leasing and foreign exchange income, both delivering solid quarters. Additionally, other non-interest income increased $3.6 million for the quarter due to higher income from bank on life insurance and other limited partnership investments. Non-interest expense for the quarter is outlined on slide 20. Core expenses decreased $5.7 million during the period, driven by lower compensation costs tied to lower fee income. Turning now to slides 21 and 22, our ACL model resulted in a total allowance which includes both funded and unfunded reserves of $208 million and $8.2 million of total provision expense during the period. This resulted in an ACL that was 1.38% of total loans, which was a two basis point increase from the first quarter. Provision expense was primarily driven by loan growth and net charge offs, which were 20 basis points for the period, declining 15 basis points from the first quarter. Overall, credit trends were positive with a 42% reduction in net charge-offs and slight declines in both non-performing and classified assets. Finally, as shown on slides 23 and 24, capital ratios remain in excess of both regulatory minimums and internal targets. During the first quarter, tangible book value increased to 1664, while the TCE ratio increased to 8.2% at the end of the period. At this point, our tangible book value exceeds pre-Westfield and bank financial levels. Total shareholder return remains strong, with 34% of our second quarter earnings returned to our shareholders during the period through the common dividend. We are also very pleased that the Board of Directors voted to increase the common dividend going forward to $0.26 per share.

We maintain our commitment to providing an attractive return to our shareholders and they're evaluating capital actions that support that commitment i'll now turn it back over to archie for some comments on our outlook archie thank you jamie before we conclude our prepared remarks i want to comment on our third quarter outlook which can be found on slide 25. we expect mid single digit loan growth on an annualized basis while on the deposit side we expect low single digit core deposit balance growth our net interest margin remains around the highest in the peer group and we expect it will hold steady in a 396 3.96 to 4.01 percent range over the next quarter that assumes no changes in interest rates this also assumes purchase accounting accretion that's in line with the second quarter as for credit we expect third quarter credit costs to approximate second quarter levels and acl coverage to remain relatively stable as a percentage of loans i was pleased to see positive trends in our credit quality metrics in the second quarter, and we see net charge also approximating 25 to 30 basis points for the back half of the year, consistent with our outlook for the last couple of years. On fee income, we expect foreign exchange and investment banking income to rebound, and total fee income would be between $74 and $77 million in the third quarter, which includes $15 to $17 million for foreign exchange and $22 to $24 million for leasing business revenue. Non-interest expenses are expected to be between $149 and $152 million. We successfully completed the bank financial conversion in June, and we are on pace to achieve our modeled cost savings with full savings realized in the fourth quarter. Full savings from the Westfield acquisition will be in the third quarter run rate. As we announced late yesterday, we've agreed to acquire Finward Bancorp, the holding company for People's Bank. FinWord currently has 24 banking locations. It's headquartered in Munster, Indiana, and as such, this acquisition is expected to strategically expand First Financial's ability to serve the consumers and businesses of the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana markets. Benward has approximately $2 billion in assets, $1.7 billion in deposits, $1.5 billion in loans, and $412 million in wealth assets under management. And we're very excited to partner with a bank with a similar operating velocity and strong credit culture. Not only does this transaction demonstrate our commitment to strategic growth in the Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland markets, we believe the transaction is also an attractive one for our shareholders. Under the terms of the agreement, each outstanding share of FinWord common stock will be converted into the right to receive 1.35 shares of First Financial common stock, valuing the transaction at approximately $208 million based on First Financial's closing price on July 20th. In addition, we expect the transaction to be approximately 5% accretive to First Financial's earnings per share, and First Financial's tangible look value per share at closing is estimated to be only slightly diluted with an anticipated tangible look value earned back of just over half a year. For further details on the transaction, please refer to the slides 26 through 33 in our deck. including our recent acquisition of bank financial we will have added 2.9 billion dollars in lower cost deposits to our legacy operation in northwest indiana and have a total of 4.1 billion dollars in deposits in chicago and northwest indiana we'll have a branch network of over 40 offices and we'll have built an impressive combination of talent in commercial banking mortgage banking wealth management and specialty bank solutions complemented by our client-centered community focused business model that is the alternative to larger banks in the region through these two acquisitions we expect to add approximately eight percent in earnings per share accretion with no impact potential book value and the chicago north association indiana market would become the second largest market in our company to demonstrate our further commitment to this market first financials committed to donate five hundred thousand dollars to its foundation for the benefit of local organizations in the community served by thin work in addition to the $1 million we donated to the foundation when we entered the Chicago market with the completion of the acquisition of Bank Financial in January of this year. To wrap up my comments, the second quarter was another great quarter for our company. We achieved record earnings while successfully integrating two bank acquisitions and positioning the company for continued success in the second half of the year. Regarding the recently integrated Westfield and Bank Financial acquisitions, we're very pleased with how our newer associates have assimilated into the company. They remain deeply committed to serving their clients and communities, and their efforts have been instrumental in high client retention levels. We are thankful for their dedication, hard work, and client-focused approach over the past year. I'm very proud of the work our teams have done throughout the integration process and their efforts position us for success in our newly expanded markets. Finally, we're really excited to announce our expansion in Northwest Indiana and Chicago with FINWARD, and we look forward to the opportunities that this combination provides. With that, we'll now open up the call for questions. So, Leah, right up the lines.

We will now begin the question and answer session. If you would like to ask a question, please press star 1 to raise your hand. To withdraw your question, press star 1 again. We ask that you pick up your handset when asking a question, to allow for optimum sound quality. If you are muted locally, please remember to unmute your device. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster. Your first question from the line of Brendan Nozell with Huvdi Group. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Hey, good morning, guys. Hope you're doing well.

Morning, Brendan.

Morning. Maybe starting off here on Capital, just in light of the FinWord deal, you're using some capital, but honestly, not that much for the transaction. So I guess two parts. One, with three deals in short order, are you on the M&A sidelines now, or is there still an ability to transact? And then two, last quarter, you started talking about a higher total payout ratio. So curious for your updated thoughts in light of the FinWord announcement.

Yeah, Brendan. This is Archie. I'll answer the first part and have Jamie answered the second part. You're right. This is the third transaction. I think we closed, of course, Bank Financial in January, converted it in June. Finward, we would hope we would close by year end and then convert sometime in the second quarter of next year. Relative to our size, this is a fairly smaller incremental deal, very strategic. We think it's very important for what we're doing in that part of our footprint, but it is somewhat incremental. So we don't see ourselves on the sideline but we're not I mean you know there's just a window here where opportunities are popping up and so we'll we'll assess them as they come we don't see anything in the near term I would say near to intermediate term that we're focused on other than you know getting thin we're closed and integrated as a company so that's probably our work the next say four quarters or so and then we'll just see what happens as we get into 27 and and Brendan, this is Jamie.

So on the return of capital question, part of the question you had there. So, you know, just with the common dividend, we kind of look in that 35 to 40 percent range. I think we're right in that mid-30s right now. And yeah, we talked about, I think, the last quarter bumping that up to include some buybacks. And so with the deal kind of you know, in process in the second quarter, we held off on the buyback. But I think here going forward, we'll be in the market. You know, we're kind of looking at our capital and our earnings is kind of breaking them up into three parts with a third-ish getting returned through the common dividend, a third retaining for organic growth and potentially some small M&A like we're doing now, and then allocating a third for a buyback. So I think that's the plan kind of long term going forward.

Okay, fantastic. That's helpful color for both of you. Maybe pivoting to fee income um as always you give really good color on expectations for the lease and forex lines uh maybe just help us with client derivative fees and kind of the wealth management piece i guess there was an investment banking component for for wealth this quarter um so just kind of help us on you know what was going on this quarter and then you know how those kind of fit into the fee outlook going forward sure brenda's archie again so on on foreign exchange is a little bit a little bit lower than q1 a little bit lower maybe than their their run rate but if you look at it for the first half of the year so q1 q2 we always said this is a little bit of a lumpy this has some lumpiness to it so

we don't typically look at it in one quarter isolation but if you look at it even over the last first half of this year and compared to the first half of last year they're up about almost 12 percent in revenue so you know this year 29.4 percent first half last year 26.3 so they're doing fine uh they do have lumpiness uh you know we've always said there's a core part of their business a lot of small transactions and then they have some chunky pieces a little bit larger based on uh some of the clients they work with especially those who may be buying or selling companies uh so that creates a little bit of chunkiness uh in in their results so we look at it over longer windows to see how they're doing but right now uh for the first year first half the year their own plan in our internal uh versus our internal budget and doing you know quite a bit better than last year on the uh wealth side we we have a small limited advisory practice it really makes up our investment or investment banking income again it's very small it probably does five to six million in revenue uh so you know think about it kind of you know a million half a quarter uh kind of would be kind of an average but again it's chunky coming into the quarter we had two deals we expected to get done in the quarter and they both just got pushed we expect those to happen um in the in the third quarter there's a pipeline nice pipeline of other deals but uh they just get closed when they get

close so it's just a small enough business that um if you don't get one then it changes what happens there uh thank you for taking my questions much appreciated yeah you're welcome yes your next question is from the line of daniel to mayo with bancor your line is thank you please go ahead all right thanks guys still with uh raymond james by the way but moving on um hey danny uh hey rt

and jimmy um so i guess first just on the deal um curious what your plans are for the uh the finworth balance sheet any um sales considered in terms of um you know anything in the loan side securities um book i'm curious what you're going to do with that and um you know bigger picture how you see the the size of the balance sheet trending over the next several quarters Yeah, Danny, on the loan side, I mean, good news is the asset quality is strong, stable.

We just see that we'll bring in a team of actually talented team of bankers. We don't have that, you know, that big of a team up there. So we're going to incorporate the bankers from Trimward into our team, and we're going to add capacity for them and products and capabilities. So if anything, we can do more with the clients they have and, you know, go out and I think probably create a faster run rate for growth overall, but as far as the loans on the books, we're going to retain those and incorporate them into our balance sheet overall, and then just, again, try to use that team to go deeper with their clients and bigger. On the security side, Jamie, I'll be covering.

Yeah, Danny, so on the security side, I mean, I think what we'll end up doing, just because typically these smaller banks will have a lot of different pieces and QSIPs. And so we'll probably blow a lot of it out. But that all gets accounted for in purchase accounting. So we already have that, I guess, their unrealized loss built into the accretion in the deal. So we'll basically blow it out and reinvest it at current rates, which is what purchasing does anyway. So, but, but nothing, nothing really, you know, any big change in the balance sheet, nothing like we had on bank financial where we sold, you know, the big chunk of loans. It's really just, you know, kind of, I would say selling and reinvesting into, you know, more of our philosophy on the investment side, but nothing, nothing radical that would change, um, the math or anything.

Okay. Yeah. And in terms of like, I know it's a tough question, but, but, uh, but ultimate balance sheet, um, you know, the, the, the, the trajectory of the balance sheet post close, um, you, you, you expect, and this kind of wraps in a question on, you know, the legacy bank, but obviously you've been, um, kind of staying flattish, maybe modest growth, uh, just overall balance sheet despite the sizable loan growth. Is that probably still the plan over the next several quarters as the bank or the balance sheet kind of continues to normalize?

Yeah, Danny, this is Jamie. So, yeah, I think you're talking about last quarter, we talked about kind of going forward what our plan was in terms of earning assets. And so I think with the with the loan growth that we see going forward, our plan, you know, if you look at our balance sheet now, the securities portfolio is a little bit outside compared to what we would normally run just because of all the cash that we got in in the first quarter from bank financial. And then, you know, they already had a fairly low loan to deposit ratio. And then we sold, you know, about 400 million of their loans. So we basically got about a billion dollars in excess funding there, which we put most of that to work in the securities portfolio for the time being. And then over time here, and really when I say over time, it's probably over the next year to two years, we'll let that securities portfolio kind of bleed back down. So our plan for the short term is that we're funding roughly about 50% of the loan growth through the cash flow in the securities portfolio. So, you know, if we are growing, if we're growing loans in that kind of mid to high single digits, call it six, seven percent, about half of that will get funded through the securities portfolio and half of that will be earning asset growth.

Great. That's very helpful. Appreciate it. And then I guess this last one for you, Archie, on the M&A side, just more high level. I mean, does this feel like you mentioned you're this is now Chicago is now your second biggest market. Does that feel like it's a good size for you post post close of this deal that, you know, you're you're fine kind of growing organically going forward? Are you still interested in opportunities to to further the penetration in Chicago?

Yeah, I think, Daniel, $4 billion at least gets us to a place where we've got a platform to grow with talent, which when we're smaller, it's hard to do. So I think we've got ourselves to the level we can do that now. Also, spend more money on the brand and introducing the brand to the market, we're probably better able to do that. I think there's opportunities in that market still. And I think, you know, these two companies that – well, the one we've closed and now the one that we were announcing yesterday will give us opportunities to probably have, you know, some more conversation discussions over the next year or two. So we think there's more to do, but I think if this is where we landed, it's big enough.

Okay. Well, great. Thanks for all the color guys. Appreciate it.

Your next question from the line of Brandon Rudd with Stephen Zink. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Morning. I said maybe my first one on on expenses with the close at the end of this year. Can you maybe kind of talk about when the conversion takes place and then in which quarter next year do you think you have 100% of the cost saves realized?

Right. Yeah, so right now, you know, obviously we're early in the process through the application process and whatnot. But, you know, we are anticipating that we would close at the end of the year. So call it January 1. um you know we think that the conversion then would take place sometime um in the second quarter so if you just said right now let's just say that the conversion takes place in the middle of the second quarter then we would realize cost savings you know for the um you know those would bleed in a little bit post conversion so call it you probably have 90 days after that conversion so So if you said as of the end of the third quarter of next year, everything would be fully baked in. And I guess the first full quarter of all the cost savings would be the fourth quarter of next year.

Gotcha. Okay, perfect. Thank you for that. And then can you talk about the trajectory for your core margin on a go-forward basis? And what I mean by that is, like, when you look at new balance sheet growth, where are you seeing new loan yields come on on a blended basis and then same for blended interest spring deposit costs?

Yeah, so right now, I mean, I would tell you, absent any changes in rates, you know, we look at our margin here going forward as being relatively flat. You know, we're in that, and I guess the only variable there, which is what we had in the second quarter, would be on the accretion income front. So, you know, if we're at 398, I mean, I think the bias here going forward is we see a little bit of a slight uptick in deposit costs, And that's mainly due to, on the CD side, those repricing slightly higher than what we have on the books right now. And then the same thing on the loan side, in the second quarter, essentially our origination yields and payoff yields were essentially right on top of each other. So we get, you know, the loan side, and then so we get a little bit of growth, so we'll get a little bit of net interest income dollars growth, but we see the margin staying relatively flat. Now, I mean, here going forward, obviously the markets are indicating, you know, the next movement in rates could be, you know, rates going up, which would obviously help us from a margin standpoint. And so at this point, post Bank Financial and Westfield, we're still asset sensitive, slightly less than what we were maybe a year or so ago or a year or two ago. But we see a 25 basis point rate hike helps us initially about seven or eight basis points. And then when it, because the loans are going to move right away with SOFR and then the deposit costs will bleed in over time. And then as everything kind of stabilizes, a 25 basis point increase is about, call it around three or four basis points of increase in the margin.

Got it. Thank you very much for the caller, and I appreciate you for taking my questions.

All right, Brandon. Thanks, Brandon. Take care.

Your next question comes from the line of Brian Soran with Truist Securities. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Oh, hey. I had one question on M&A and then one follow-up on the new loan production yields. And to start on M&A, I mean, it just feels like with other banks, it's almost like a truism that, you know, you've got to accept tangible book value dilution up front. You get the earnings accretion hopefully going forward and you kind of solve for a three-year earn back. You know, when we look at these deals you've done and the ability to generate, you know, 20% accretion now across the three deals with really not much impact on tangible book, Would you say it was more just unique opportunities or is there something you're doing and the type of deals you're looking for, the way you're structuring the transactions that, you know, this is more of a sustained thing you can do going forward as well if opportunities arise?

Yeah, Brian, this is Archie and do it every time. Circumstances, certainly in the main financial case, you know, that was so. I think in, you know, we ended up with a bargain purchase game there. um and you think about this one i think there's the big the big driver is just the differentiation in our uh finwards that's probably a significant part of this find those opportunities that way and we we are disciplined that we we certainly wouldn't want to go over three and um you know we like i think the size of this one and the differentiation the differential in price to tangible or the drivers for the earn back math. So it's kind of going to be situational, but we are going to stay within a pretty tight discipline with regard to how we do the capital.

And then maybe on the new loan deal, I know you all have been pretty intentional about building a pretty diversified platform and maybe that's serving you well in the current environment. A lot of your peers are kind of starting to point to new production being below the existing book and creating some margin pressure, you know, is it, as you break apart all the pockets of loans you have, is it kind of across the board that it's relatively equal, or are there maybe some unique or niche businesses that, or markets that are maybe coming in a little better, and that's why, you know, maybe you're not seeing the same trend that some of the peers are citing?

Yeah, Brian, hey, it's Jamie. So, yeah, like I mentioned, that, like, essentially the The origination and payoff yields were right on top of each other for the second quarter within like five, ten basis points. And that's for the whole portfolio. But, yeah, there are some, I would say, some puts and takes in there. And where we are picking up, I think, a little bit of yield and spread that's kind of offsetting the payoffs is really in the specialty lines that we have. So I think those are – the fact that that makes up, you know, about 15%, 20% of the loan book, and that's where we really saw, especially in the second quarter, a decent amount of our growth. I think that is helping prop those yields up a little bit. But, I mean, overall, we're seeing some deterioration in spreads and resulting yields in what I would call the core bank, but it's not significant. So, again, we're able to kind of offset that with a specialty.

Great. Thank you so much.

Yep. Thanks, Brian.

As a reminder, to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad to raise your hand. Your next question comes from the line of Henry Walchak, private investor. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Thanks for buying FinWord or the old Northwest Indiana Bancor. Hey, you guys are really making my summer super. And also thanks for buying bank financial. I also had positions in those two companies. And again, super thanks for raising our dividend by a penny. It helps us all better on social security. Thank you. I pull back.

Thank you, Henry. We look forward. We're glad that you feel good about the announcement.

This concludes the question and answer session. I will now turn the call back to Archie Brown for closing remarks.

Thank you, Leah. Thanks, everybody, for joining us today. We're excited about the year. We're excited about the announcement of FinWord and integrating it into the company and building a much bigger market in northwest part of our footprint. Thanks for following us. We look forward to talking to you again next quarter. Have a nice day.

This concludes today's call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.