Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter 2020 Financial Results and Increases Quarterly Cash Dividend to $0.30 per Share

Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PPBI) (the “Company” or “Pacific Premier”), the holding company of Pacific Premier Bank (the “Bank”), reported net income for the fourth quarter of 2020 of $67.1 million, or $0.71 per diluted share, compared with net income of $66.6 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2020 and net income of $41.1 million, or $0.69 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2019.

For the three months ended December 31, 2020, the Company’s return on average assets (“ROAA”) was 1.34%, return on average equity (“ROAE”) was 9.91%, and return on average tangible common equity (“ROATCE”) was 16.32%, compared to 1.31%, 9.90%, and 16.44%, respectively, for the third quarter of 2020 and 1.42%, 8.20%, and 15.89%, respectively, for the fourth quarter of 2019. Total assets as of December 31, 2020 were $19.7 billion compared to $19.8 billion at September 30, 2020 and $11.8 billion at December 31, 2019. A reconciliation of the non–U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) measure of ROATCE to the GAAP measure of common stockholders' equity is set forth at the end of this press release.

Steven R. Gardner, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented, “We delivered a strong quarter to end 2020 that reflects our improved earnings power and overall operational strength. Despite the low interest rate environment and the uncertainty around the pandemic, we generated a return on average assets and average tangible common equity, exclusive of merger-related expenses, of 1.41% and 17.2%, respectively.

“Having completed the Opus integration in early October, we were able to increase our focus on business development throughout the remainder of the fourth quarter. As a result, we ended the year with a strong loan pipeline as our teams are attracting larger, more sophisticated clients. During the fourth quarter, our new loan commitments were up substantially from the prior quarter, although elevated payoffs and strategic loan sales reduced our loan balances at quarter end.

“Our strong earnings continue to enhance our capital levels, and we remain committed to a disciplined, prudent capital management strategy. We recently adopted a new stock repurchase program, increasing the size over the program previously adopted in late 2019. We also announced today that we increased our common stock dividend to $0.30 per share, from $0.28 per share in the prior quarter. Since initiating our dividend program two years ago, we have steadily increased the amount of capital we are returning to shareholders, which has positively influenced total shareholder returns.

“As we begin 2021, we are well-positioned to manage through the impact of the ongoing pandemic and capitalize on the economic recovery. We expect increasing levels of organic growth in our various markets, and we will continue to pursue strategic growth opportunities that can expand and enhance our franchise. Over the past several years we have made investments in talent and technology to create a robust, highly scalable platform to generate profitable growth, and we are confident in our ability to execute and deliver for our shareholders in the years ahead.”

Mr. Gardner concluded, “I want to thank all of the Pacific Premier team members for their strong commitment to our clients, our communities, and each other. Their incredible resiliency and talents are what drive our results.”

INCOME STATEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin

Net interest income totaled $168.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2020, an increase of $1.7 million from the third quarter of 2020. The increase in net interest income was driven by higher average investment securities, higher loan related fees, and lower rates paid on deposits, partially offset by the impact of lower average loans and yields.

Net interest margin for the fourth quarter of 2020 was 3.61%, compared with 3.54% for the third quarter of 2020. Our core net interest margin, which excludes the impact of loan accretion, certificates of deposit mark-to-market amortization, and other one-time adjustments, increased 9 basis points to 3.32%, compared to 3.23% in the prior quarter. The increase was a result of higher loan related fees driven by elevated prepayments and lower cost of funds driven by lower rates paid on deposits, partially offset by the decrease attributable to the shift in interest-earning asset mix and lower loan yields.

Net interest income for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased $55.3 million, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. The increase was primarily attributable to an increase in average interest-earning assets of $8.17 billion, which primarily resulted from the acquisition of Opus Bank (“Opus”) in the second quarter of 2020 and organic loan growth, as well as a higher average investment securities and a lower cost of funds, partially offset by lower average loan and investment yields, and higher average deposits.

Provision for Credit Losses

Provision for credit losses for the fourth quarter of 2020 was $1.5 million, a decrease of $2.7 million from the third quarter of 2020 and a decrease of $780,000 from the fourth quarter of 2019. The current quarter provision for credit losses included an $8.1 million recapture of the provision for loan losses, partially offset by a $9.6 million provision for unfunded commitments. The $8.1 million recapture of the provision for loan losses was primarily attributable to lower loans held for investment and favorable changes in asset quality and loan mix. The $9.6 million provision for unfunded commitments was primarily due to an increase in outstanding unfunded commitments in the commercial and industrial loan segment.

Noninterest income

Noninterest income for the fourth quarter of 2020 was $23.2 million, a decrease of $3.6 million from the third quarter of 2020. The decrease was primarily due to a $9.2 million decrease in net gain from sales of loans in the third quarter of 2020, partially offset by a $3.9 million increase in net gain from sales of investment securities. In addition, other income increased $1.1 million related to equity investment income and a $212,000 increase in recoveries of pre-acquisition charged-off loans. Also, service charges on deposit accounts increased $412,000 and trust custodial account fees increased $336,000 from the prior quarter.

During the fourth quarter of 2020, the Bank sold $2.1 million of SBA loans for a net gain of $154,000, compared with $1.16 billion of SBA PPP loans sold for a net gain of $19.0 million in the third quarter of 2020. The fourth quarter of 2020 also included the sale of $59.2 million of other loans for a net gain of $174,000, compared to sales of $96.2 million of other loans for a net loss of $9.4 million during the third quarter of 2020.

During the fourth quarter of 2020, the Bank sold $202.6 million of investment securities for a net gain of $5.0 million, compared to the sales of $211.4 million of investment securities for a net gain of $1.1 million in the prior quarter.

Noninterest income for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased $13.4 million, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. The increase was primarily due to the addition of $7.3 million of custodial account fees from Pacific Premier Trust, a $1.4 million increase in earnings on bank-owned life insurance (“BOLI”), primarily due to additional BOLI from Opus, an increase in net gain from sales of investment securities of $1.3 million, and a $3.7 million increase in other income, primarily due to a $1.5 million increase in equity investment income as well as a $1.3 million increase in escrow and exchange fee income.

The decrease in net gain from sales of loans for the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the same period last year was primarily due to the sale of $2.1 million of SBA loans for a net gain of $154,000 and the sale of $59.2 million of other loans for a net gain of $174,000 during the fourth quarter of 2020, compared to the sale of $23.7 million of SBA loans for a net gain of $2.1 million and the sale of $8.4 million of other loans for a net loss of $418,000 during the fourth quarter of 2019.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense totaled $99.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2020, an increase of $1.4 million compared to the third quarter of 2020, primarily due to the increase of $2.1 million in merger-related expense related to the Opus acquisition. Excluding merger-related expense, noninterest expense totaled $94.9 million, a decrease of $723,000, compared to the third quarter of 2020, driven by a $1.2 million decrease in other expense, an $803,000 decrease in legal and professional services expense, and a $793,000 decrease in data processing. These decreases were partially offset by a net $1.0 million increase in compensation as a result of a Company-wide employee appreciation bonus in the aggregate amount of $2.4 million related to the COVID-19 pandemic and higher accrued incentive compensation of $472,000, partially offset by higher loan origination deferred costs of $1.7 million, and an $895,000 increase in premises and occupancy expense due, in part, to ongoing COVID-19 pandemic-related maintenance expenses.

Noninterest expense increased by $33.7 million, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. The increase was primarily due to a $5.1 million increase in merger-related expense related to the Opus acquisition, a $15.6 million increase in compensation and benefits, a $5.2 million increase in premises and occupancy expense, a $2.0 million increase in FDIC insurance premiums, a $1.1 million increase in office expense, and a $1.0 million increase in legal and professional services expense, predominately as a result of the additional operations, personnel, branches, and divisions retained with the acquisition of Opus.

Income Tax

For the fourth quarter of 2020, our effective tax rate was 25.4%, compared to 26.5% for the third quarter of 2020 and 24.2% for the fourth quarter of 2019. The decrease in the effective tax rate from the prior quarter was primarily due to the increase in tax-exempt municipal interest recognized in the fourth quarter.

BALANCE SHEET HIGHLIGHTS

Loans

Loans held for investment totaled $13.24 billion at December 31, 2020, a decrease of $214.4 million from September 30, 2020, and an increase of $4.51 billion from December 31, 2019. The decrease from September 30, 2020 was driven primarily by higher loan prepayments and payoffs, partially offset by higher funded loans.

During the fourth quarter of 2020, the Bank generated $911.3 million of loan commitments and funded $712.5 million of loans, compared with $360.0 million in loan commitments and $280.8 million in funded loans for the third quarter of 2020, and $556.3 million of loan commitments and $419.9 million in funded loans for the fourth quarter of 2019. The year-over-year increase in loans funded was primarily due to expansion in our multifamily loan segment. Business lines of credit utilization rates increased to 36.2% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with 33.9% at the end of the third quarter of 2020, but decreased from 44.3% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2019.

The increase in loans held for investment from December 31, 2019 was primarily due to the acquisition of Opus, which added $5.94 billion in gross loans, or $5.81 billion of loans held for investment after purchase accounting adjustments, at the time of acquisition.

At December 31, 2020, the ratio of loans held for investment to total deposits was 81.6%, compared with 82.4% and 98.0% at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively.

The following table presents the composition of the loan portfolio as of the dates indicated:

The total end of period weighted average interest rate on loans, excluding fees and discounts, at December 31, 2020 was 4.27%, compared with 4.34% at September 30, 2020 and 4.91% at December 31, 2019. The quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year decreases reflect the impact of lower rates on loan originations as well as repricing of portfolio loan yields as a result of the Federal Reserve Board's federal funds rate decrease in March 2020.

The following table presents the composition of new organic loan commitments originated during the quarters indicated:

Allowance for Credit Losses

Effective January 1, 2020, the Company adopted the new CECL accounting standard, which replaces the incurred loss methodology. At December 31, 2020, our allowance for credit losses (“ACL”) on loans held for investment was $268.0 million, a decrease of $14.5 million from September 30, 2020 and an increase of $232.3 million from December 31, 2019, and continues to reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting uncertainty in the macroeconomic environment. The decrease from September 30, 2020 was driven principally by lower loans held for investment as well as changes in loan mix at December 31, 2020. The increase from December 31, 2019 was primarily due to the cumulative-effect Day 1 adjustment of $55.7 million from the adoption of the CECL model, the Day 1 provision of $75.9 million for non-purchased credit deteriorated (“PCD”) loans from the Opus acquisition, and an initial ACL of $21.2 million with respect to PCD loans from the acquisition, as well as the provision for loan losses of $96.4 million primarily due to the unfavorable changes in economic forecasts employed in the Company's CECL model related to the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020.

During the fourth quarter of 2020, the Company incurred $6.4 million of net charge-offs, compared to $4.5 million and $2.3 million during the third quarter of 2020 and the fourth quarter of 2019, respectively.

The following table provides the allocation of the ACL for loans held for investment as well as the activity in the ACL attributed to various segments in the loan portfolio as of and for the period indicated:

The ratio of allowance for loan losses to total loans held for investment at December 31, 2020 was 2.02%, compared to 2.10% and 0.41% at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. Under the guidance of ASC 820: Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, the fair value discount on loans acquired through bank acquisitions was $113.8 million, or 0.85% of total loans held for investment, as of December 31, 2020, compared to $126.3 million, or 0.93% of total loans held for investment, as of September 30, 2020, and $40.7 million, or 0.46% of total loans held for investment, as of December 31, 2019.

Asset Quality

Nonperforming assets totaled $29.2 million, or 0.15% of total assets, at December 31, 2020, an increase of $1.7 million from September 30, 2020 and an increase of $20.2 million from December 31, 2019. During the fourth quarter of 2020, nonperforming loans increased $2.0 million from September 30, 2020 to $29.2 million and other real estate owned decreased $334,000 from September 30, 2020 to zero resulting from the sale of other real estate owned property. Loan delinquencies decreased to $13.3 million, or 0.10% of loans held for investment, compared to $29.4 million, or 0.22% of loans held for investment, at September 30, 2020, and $19.1 million, or 0.22% of loans held for investment, at December 31, 2019.

Classified loans totaled $128.3 million, or 0.97% of loans held for investment, at December 31, 2020, compared to $136.7 million, or 1.02% of loans held for investment, at September 30, 2020, and $45.4 million, or 0.52% of loans held for investment, at December 31, 2019. The decrease in classified loans from September 30, 2020 was driven, in part, by the sale of substandard loans totaling $20.1 million, as well as the net changes in risk ratings during the quarter. The year-over-year increase was driven, in part, by the migration to the substandard risk grade of approximately $57.4 million of loans subject to temporary loan modifications as of December 31, 2020, the addition of classified loans from the Opus acquisition in the second quarter of 2020, as well as the net changes in risk rating during fiscal 2020.

Interest typically is not accrued on loans 90 days or more past due or when, in the opinion of management, there is reasonable doubt as to the timely collection of principal or interest. There were no loans 90 days or more past due and still accruing interest at December 31, 2020. There were no troubled debt restructured loans at December 31, 2020 and September 30, 2020, and $3.0 million troubled debt restructured loans at December 31, 2019.

At December 31, 2020, 52 loans totaling $79.5 million, or 0.60% of loans held for investment, remain within their modification period due to the COVID-19 pandemic hardship under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), of which $20.2 million of loans has migrated to the substandard risk grade. As of December 31, 2020, no loans were in-process for potential modification. At September 30, 2020, the Company’s loan portfolio included 54 loans totaling $118.3 million, or 0.88% of loans held for investment, that were modified due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as $119.4 million of loans in-process for potential modification.

Investment Securities

Investment securities available-for-sale totaled $3.93 billion at December 31, 2020, an increase of $330.4 million from September 30, 2020, and an increase of $2.56 billion from December 31, 2019. The increase as compared to the third quarter of 2020 was primarily the result of purchases of $637.8 million as the company deployed its excess liquidity, and a mark-to-market fair value adjustment increase of $24.4 million, partially offset by sales of $202.6 million and total principal payments, amortization, and redemptions of $129.5 million. The increase compared to the same period last year was primarily the result of $2.72 billion in purchases, $829.9 million acquired from Opus, and a $54.3 million in mark-to-market fair value adjustments, partially offset by $752.6 million in sales and $298.4 million in principal payments, amortization, and redemptions. The Company’s assessment of held-to-maturity and available-for-sale investment securities indicated that no ACL was required as of January 1, 2020 or December 31, 2020.

Deposits

At December 31, 2020, deposits totaled $16.21 billion, a decrease of $116.6 million from September 30, 2020, and an increase of $7.32 billion from December 31, 2019. At December 31, 2020, non-maturity deposits totaled $14.59 billion, a decrease of $25.0 million, or 0.2%, from September 30, 2020 and an increase of $6.74 billion, or 85.8%, from December 31, 2019. During the fourth quarter of 2020, deposit decreases included $115.7 million in money market/savings deposits, $70.5 million in retail certificates of deposits, $24.7 million in interest checking, and $21.1 million in brokered certificates of deposits, partially offset by a $115.4 million increase in noninterest-bearing deposits compared to the third quarter of 2020. The increase in deposits from December 31, 2019 was primarily due to the acquisition of Opus.

The weighted average cost of deposits for the fourth quarter of 2020 was 0.14%, including the favorable impact of the acquired certificates of deposit mark-to-market amortization, compared with 0.20% for the third quarter of 2020 and 0.58% for the fourth quarter of 2019. The decrease in the weighted average cost of deposits for the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the third quarter of 2020 was principally driven by lower pricing across all deposit product categories, and higher average noninterest-bearing deposits.

The end of period weighted average rate of deposits at December 31, 2020 was 0.18%.

Borrowings

At December 31, 2020, total borrowings amounted to $532.5 million, a decrease of $9.9 million from September 30, 2020 and a decrease of $199.7 million from December 31, 2019. Total borrowings at December 31, 2020 included $31.0 million of Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (“FHLB”) advances and $501.5 million of subordinated debt. At December 31, 2020, total borrowings represented 2.7% of total assets, compared to 2.7% and 6.2% as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. The decrease in borrowings at December 31, 2020 as compared to September 30, 2020 was primarily due to decreases in FHLB advances. The decrease in borrowings at December 31, 2020 as compared to December 31, 2019 was primarily due to lower FHLB advances, partially offset by the issuance in June 2020 of $150 million in aggregate principal amount of the Company's 5.375% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Subordinated Notes due June 15, 2030, as well as the $135 million aggregate principal amount of subordinated notes assumed by the Bank in connection with the acquisition of Opus in the second quarter of 2020.

Capital Ratios

At December 31, 2020, our ratio of tangible common equity to total assets was 9.40%, compared with 9.01% in the prior quarter and 10.30% at December 31, 2019, and our tangible book value per share was $18.65, compared to $18.01 at September 30, 2020 and $18.84 at December 31, 2019.

The Company implemented the CECL model on January 1, 2020 and elected to phase in the full effect of CECL on regulatory capital over the five-year transition period. At December 31, 2020, the Company exceeded all regulatory minimum capital adequacy requirements, inclusive of the fully phased-in capital conservation buffer, with a tier 1 leverage capital ratio of 9.47%, common equity tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 12.04%, tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 12.04%, and total risk-based capital ratio of 16.31%.

At December 31, 2020, the Bank exceeded all regulatory capital requirements with a tier 1 leverage capital ratio of 10.89%, common equity tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 13.84%, tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 13.84%, and total risk-based capital of 15.89%. These capital ratios exceeded the “well capitalized” standards defined by the federal banking regulators of 5.00% for tier 1 leverage ratio, 6.5% for common equity tier 1 capital ratio, 8.00% for tier 1 capital ratio, and 10.00% for total capital ratio and exceeded the minimum capital ratio levels inclusive of the fully phased-in capital conservation buffer of 7.0%, 8.5%, and 10.5%, respectively.

Dividend and Stock Repurchase Program

On January 21, 2021, the Company's Board of Directors declared a $0.30 per share dividend, payable on February 12, 2021 to shareholders of record on February 5, 2021. This represents a $0.02 per share, or 7% increase, compared to the prior quarter’s quarterly dividend rate.

On January 11, 2020, the Company’s Board of Directors approved a new stock repurchase program, which authorized the repurchase up to 4,725,000 shares of its common stock, representing approximately 5% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock and approximately $150 million of common stock as of December 31, 2020 based on the closing price of the Company’s common stock on December 31, 2020. The stock repurchase program may be limited or terminated at any time without notice. The new stock repurchase program replaces and supersedes the previous $100 million stock repurchase program approved by the Board in December 2019, which the Company announced was suspended indefinitely in March 2020. The Company had not repurchased any shares of common stock under the previous stock repurchase program.

Conference Call and Webcast

The Company will host a conference call at 9:00 a.m. PT / 12:00 p.m. ET on January 26, 2021 to discuss its financial results. Analysts and investors may participate in the question-and-answer session. A live webcast will be available on the Webcasts page of the Company's investor relations website. An archived version of the webcast will be available in the same location shortly after the live call has ended. The conference call can be accessed by telephone at (866) 290-5977 and asking to be joined to the Pacific Premier Bancorp conference call. Additionally, a telephone replay will be made available through February 2, 2021 at (877) 344-7529, access code 10150509.

About Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc.

Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PPBI) is the parent company of Pacific Premier Bank, a California based commercial bank focused on serving small, middle-market, and corporate businesses throughout the western United States in major metropolitan markets in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and Nevada. Founded in 1983, Pacific Premier Bank has grown to become one of the largest banks headquartered in the western region of the United States, with approximately $20 billion in total assets. Pacific Premier Bank provides banking products and services, including deposit accounts, digital banking, and treasury management services, to businesses, professionals, entrepreneurs, real estate investors, and nonprofit organizations. Pacific Premier Bank also offers a wide array of loan products, such as commercial business loans, lines of credit, SBA loans, commercial real estate loans, agribusiness loans, franchise lending, home equity lines of credit, and construction loans. Pacific Premier Bank offers commercial escrow services and facilitates 1031 Exchange transactions through its Commerce Escrow division. Pacific Premier Bank offers clients IRA custodial services through its Pacific Premier Trust division, which has approximately $16 billion of assets under custody and approximately 44,000 client accounts comprised of self-directed investors, financial institutions, capital syndicators, and financial advisors. Additionally, Pacific Premier Bank provides nationwide customized banking solutions to Homeowners' Associations and Property Management companies. Pacific Premier Bank is an Equal Housing Lender and Member FDIC. For additional information about Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. and Pacific Premier Bank, visit our website: www.ppbi.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING COMMENTS

The statements contained herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements based on management’s current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company including, without limitation, plans, strategies and goals, and statements about the Company’s expectations regarding revenue and asset growth, financial performance and profitability, loan and deposit growth, yields and returns, loan diversification and credit management, stockholder value creation, tax rates and the impact of acquisitions we have made or may make.

Such statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and are generally beyond the control of the Company. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting the Company will be the same as those anticipated by management. The Company cautions readers that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, such forward-looking statements. The COVID-19 pandemic is adversely affecting us, our customers, counterparties, employees, and third-party service providers, and given its ongoing and dynamic nature, the ultimate extent of the impacts on our business, financial position, results of operations, liquidity, and prospects is uncertain. Continued deterioration in general business and economic conditions, including further increases in unemployment rates, or turbulence in domestic or global financial markets could adversely affect our revenues and the values of our assets and liabilities, reduce the availability of funding, lead to a tightening of credit, and further increase stock price volatility, which could result in impairment to our goodwill in future periods. In addition, changes to statutes, regulations, or regulatory policies or practices as a result of, or in response to COVID-19, could affect us in substantial and unpredictable ways, including the potential adverse impact of loan modifications and payment deferrals implemented consistent with recent regulatory guidance. Other risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: the strength of the United States economy in general and the strength of the local economies in which we conduct operations; the effects of, and changes in, trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws, including interest rate policies of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; inflation/deflation, interest rate, market and monetary fluctuations; the effect of acquisitions we have made or may make, including, without limitation, the failure to achieve the expected revenue growth and/or expense savings from such acquisitions, and/or the failure to effectively integrate an acquisition target into our operations; the timely development of competitive new products and services and the acceptance of these products and services by new and existing customers; the impact of changes in financial services policies, laws and regulations, including those concerning taxes, banking, securities, and insurance, and the application thereof by regulatory bodies; the effectiveness of our risk management framework and quantitative models; changes in the level of our nonperforming assets and charge-offs; the expected discontinuation of LIBOR and uncertainty regarding potential alternative reference rates, including SOFR; the effect of changes in accounting policies and practices or accounting standards, as may be adopted from time-to-time by bank regulatory agencies, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the Financial Accounting Standards Board or other accounting standards setters, including ASU 2016-13 (Topic 326), “Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments,” commonly referenced as the CECL model, which has changed how we estimate credit losses and may further increase the required level of our allowance for credit losses in future periods; possible credit related impairments of securities held by us; possible impairment charges to goodwill; the impact of current governmental efforts to restructure the U.S. financial regulatory system, including any amendments to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act; changes in consumer spending, borrowing and savings habits; the effects of our lack of a diversified loan portfolio, including the risks of geographic and industry concentrations; our ability to attract deposits and other sources of liquidity; the possibility that we may reduce or discontinue the payments of dividends on our common stock; the possibility that we may discontinue our newly approved stock repurchase program or reduce or otherwise limit the level of repurchases of our common stock we may make from time to time pursuant to such program; changes in the financial performance and/or condition of our borrowers; changes in the competitive environment among financial and bank holding companies and other financial service providers; geopolitical conditions, including acts or threats of terrorism, actions taken by the United States or other governments in response to acts or threats of terrorism, and/or military conflicts, which could impact business and economic conditions in the United States and abroad; public health crisis and pandemics, including the COVID-19 pandemic, and their effects on the economic and business environments in which we operate, including on our credit quality and business operations, as well as the impact on general economic and financial market conditions; cybersecurity threats and the cost of defending against them, including the costs of compliance with potential legislation to combat cybersecurity at a state, national or global level; unanticipated regulatory or legal proceedings; and our ability to manage the risks involved in the foregoing. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements are discussed in the Company's 2019 Annual Report on Form 10-K and quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2020, June 30, 2020, and September 30, 2020 filed with the SEC and available at the SEC’s Internet site (http://www.sec.gov).

The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release any revision or update to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date on which such statements were made.

(PPBI-ER)