Flushing Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:FFIC) Q2 2022 Earnings Conference Call July 27, 2022 9:30 AM ET

Company Participants

John Buran – President and Chief Executive Officer

Susan Cullen – Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Conference Call Participants

Mark Fitzgibbon – Piper Sandler

Chris O’Connell – KBW

Manuel Navas – D.A. Davidson

Operator

Welcome to Flushing Financial Corporation's Second Quarter 2022 Earnings Conference Call. Hosting the call today are John Buran, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Susan Cullen, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Today's call is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]

A copy of the earnings press release and slide presentation that the company will be referencing today are available on its Investor Relations website at flushingbank.com. Before we begin, the company would like to remind you that discussions during this call contain forward-looking statements made under the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any such statements, including as set forth in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, to which we refer you.

During this call, references will be made to non-GAAP financial measures as supplemental measures to review and assess operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures are not intended to be considered in isolation or a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. For information about these non-GAAP measures and for a reconciliation to GAAP, please refer to the earnings release or the presentation.

I'd now like to introduce John Buran, President and Chief Executive Officer, who will provide an overview of the strategy and results. Please go ahead.

John Buran

Thank you Operator, good morning everyone and thank you for joining us for our second quarter 2022 earnings call. On today's call, I'll discuss second quarter highlights and ongoing strategic objectives before turning the call over to Susan Cullen, Chief Financial Officer. Following our prepared remarks, we will answer your questions.

The company performed very well during the second quarter. We focused on executing on our strategic objectives as the macro environment becomes more challenging with rising rates and concerns about a potential recession. We reported GAAP earnings per share of $0.81 and core EPS of $0.70. This translated to a return on assets of 122 basis points and return on equity of 15%. Core return on assets was 105 basis points and core return on equity was 13%. These returns are within range of our stated through the cycle goals of 1% and 10%.