Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Q2 2024 Earnings Conference Call July 24, 2024 11:00 AM ET

Company Participants

Paul Cardillo - IR Officer
Ignacio Alvarez - CEO
Jorge Garcia - CFO
Lidio Soriano - CRO

Conference Call Participants

Kelly Motta - KBW
Timur Braziler - Wells Fargo
Jared Shaw - Barclays
Thomas Leddy - RBC

Operator

Hello, and welcome to the Popular, Inc. 2Q Earnings Call. My name is Elliot, and I will be coordinating your call today. [Operator Instructions]

I'd now like to hand over to Paul Cardillo, Investor Relations Officer at Popular. Please go ahead.

Paul Cardillo

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. With us on the call today is our CEO, Ignacio Alvarez; our President and COO, Javier Ferrer; our CFO, Jorge Garcia; and our CRO, Lidio Soriano. They will review our results for the second quarter and then answer your questions. Other members of our management team will also be available during the Q&A session.

Before we begin, I would like to remind you that on today's call, we may make forward-looking statements regarding Popular such as projections of revenue, earnings, expenses, taxes and capital structure as well as statements regarding Popular's plans and objectives. These statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements are set forth within today's earnings release and our SEC filings. You may find today's press release and our SEC filings on our web page at popular.com.

I will now turn the call over to our CEO, Ignacio Alvarez.

Ignacio Alvarez

Good morning, and thank you for joining the call.

Before I discuss the highlights for the second quarter, I am pleased to report that today we announced a 13% increase in our quarterly common stock dividend from $0.62 to $0.70 per share, commencing with the dividend payable in the first quarter of 2025 and a $500 million common stock repurchase authorization. These actions evidence the strength of our capital position, which allows us to continue to invest in our franchise and serve the needs of our customers while also returning capital to our shareholders.

Please turn to Slide 3. We are pleased to report a strong second quarter, achieving net income of $178 million. Excluding the impact of the FDIC special assessment and tax withholding matter on the results for the first quarter, net income increased by $43 million. The results in the second quarter were driven by higher net interest income and lower provision for credit losses. Our ending loan balances increased by $473 million during the quarter.