Business

Press Release:

In an expansion of its team and its offerings, Tompkins Community Bank (Tompkins) has appointed Rijad Karabegovic to commercial cash management group leader and Chris McCormick to commercial relationship manager. Karabegovic will execute strategies that work to ensure Tompkins’ cash management products and services continue to meet clients’ evolving needs, while delivering world-class service to this important client base; McCormick will be responsible for business development across the Rochester region, strategically fostering new commercial banking relationships.

Bringing more than 20 years of industry expertise to his new role, Karabegovic will lead Tompkins’ commercial cash management group under President of Tompkins Community Bank, John McKenna. Previously, Karabegovic served as manager of commercial deposits, payments and cash management at ESL Federal Credit Union; before that, he worked as a senior vice president at HSBC Bank/HSBC Securities in Rochester. Committed to giving back to his community, Karabegovic is a board member and treasurer for The Monroe Plan for Medical Care and YourCare Health Plan, two New York-based not-for-profits.

McCormick comes to Tompkins with over 13 years of experience in the banking and finance industry. Chris is an accomplished banking professional who prioritizes assisting his clients in the growth and success of their business enterprises by serving as a strong and collaborative partner. He has assisted business entities of varying sizes in a wide range of industries and at each stage of development.  With his expertise in commercial lending, credit analysis and treasury management, he’s able to advise and provide financial solutions to businesses to best meet their specific needs. McCormick holds a master's in business administration from the University of Charleston, WV.

“A comprehensive approach to cash management and a strong commercial lending team are essential for Tompkins to contribute to our customers’ success and drive our growth as a company,” said President, Tompkins Community Bank, John McKenna. “The skills and expertise Rijad and Chris bring to their new roles will only enhance the already robust commercial banking team Tompkins has dedicated to the Rochester area.”

The addition of McCormick completes the growth of the Rochester Commercial Banking Team, enhancing client experience and services. The full team is comprised of:

• Don Cortina, Rochester Region Commercial Banking Leader
• Chris McCormick, Commercial Relationship Manager
• Brett Owen, Commercial Relationship Manager
• Scott Pittinaro, Commercial Relationship Manager

Karabegovic will lead the Tompkins’ Commercial Cash Management Group across Tompkins enterprise, including supporting the Rochester Commercial Banking Team’s efforts locally in Rochester, where Karabegovic will be based.

Press Release:

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM) (“GHM” or “the Company”), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission-critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy and process industries, announced that Daniel J. Thoren, President, Chief Executive Officer, Christopher J. Thome, Vice President – Finance and Chief Financial Officer, and Matt Malone, Vice President of Graham Corporation and General Manager of Barber-Nichols, will present and be available, in person, for investor meetings at the Gabelli Annual Aerospace & Defense Symposium in New York, NY on Thursday, September 5.

The Company presentation is scheduled to begin at 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time.  A live audio webcast of the event with accompanying slides will be available at GHM Investor Relations.  An archive of the presentation will be available at the same link following the conference.

Press Release:

Industry publication Insurance Journal has recognized Tompkins Insurance Agencies as one of the Top 100 largest insurance brokers in the United States. In the magazine’s August issue, Tompkins Insurance ranks at 75th largest in the nation, up from 79th place last year. Additionally, the firm’s parent company, Tompkins Financial Corporation, earned a spot as one of the Top 20 bank-held insurance brokerages by fee income, securing the 14th spot in this prestigious ranking.

“We have ranked on Insurance Journal’s top agencies list for many years, and it’s a distinction we don’t take for granted, “ said David S. Boyce, president and CEO of Tompkins Insurance. “The recognition signals another notable year among the largest insurance brokers in the country, and also underscores our commitment to maintaining the strong relationships with the clients we serve throughout Western New York, Central New York and Southeastern Pennsylvania.”

Insurance Journal’s 2023 rankings categorize brokers by size in revenue for the calendar year. This list allows clients to assess their broker partners, offers individual brokers a way to measure their performance against competitors and market leaders, and reveals trends for customers’ risk management and employee benefits challenges and service needs.

In addition to providing commercial insurance programs for businesses throughout New York and Pennsylvania, the agency also serves more than 36,000 personal insurance and employee benefits clients. Tompkins Insurance Agencies operates 12 offices in Western New York, five offices in Central New York and five offices in Southeast Pennsylvania. 

It is an independent insurance agency offering personal and business insurance and employee benefits services through more than 50 different companies. A part of Tompkins Financial Corporation, (trading as TMP on the NYSE - MKT), the agency is affiliated with Tompkins Community Bank and Tompkins Financial Advisors, both operating in Western New York, Central New York, Southeast Pennsylvania and New York’s Hudson Valley.

For more information, head to www.tompkinsins.com or follow Tompkins Insurance Agencies on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Press Release:

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM) (“GHM” or “the Company”), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy and process industries, today announced that Daniel J. Thoren, President and Chief Executive Officer and Christopher J. Thome, Vice President – Finance and Chief Financial Officer, will present and host investor meetings at the Midwest IDEAS Conference at The Gwen in Chicago on Thursday, August 29.

The Company presentation is scheduled to begin at 10:45 a.m. Central Time.  A live audio webcast of the event with accompanying slides will be available at GHM Investor Relations.  An archive of the presentation will be available at the same link following the conference.

Press Release:

Lawley, an independent family-owned insurance brokerage and employee benefits firm, continues its growth across the Northeast by welcoming Phil Scaffidi, Employee Benefits Consultant in Buffalo, Joe Moran, Insurance Advisor in Florham Park, New Jersey, and Carl Belizaire, Insurance Advisor in Buffalo. These additions aid in several growth initiatives across the agency.

Skilled in creating meaningful relationships with clients, Scaffidi will serve as an advisor providing employee benefit solutions. Prior to Lawley, Scaffidi held leadership roles in business sales in the Western New York community for 10+ years. He will use his previous software industry experience to help clients navigate the various benefits administration solutions that Lawley offers. He holds a Life, Accident, and Health License, and earned a bachelor’s degree from Nazareth University. Lawley is also growing their Property & Casualty sales division by adding Joe Moran to Florham Park and Carl Belizaire to Buffalo. Both Moran and Belizaire will provide creative solutions to meet the needs of their clients and help them understand the various business insurance solutions Lawley offers. 

With nearly a decade of experience, Moran brings vast industry expertise, which will enable him to effectively work with clients and streamline the insurance evaluation and implementation process. Moran was previously a Property & Casualty Vice President and held several roles in the insurance industry. 

Moran was inducted into the Top Producer’s Club, is a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC), a Construction Risk Insurance Specialist (CRIS), and earned a bachelor’s degree from The State University of New York at Fredonia.

Bringing his skillset to the sales team, Belizaire will transition from Surety Specialist to Insurance Advisor serving the Buffalo community. Through his previous role, Belizaire built strong relationships with agents, brokers, and carriers, and assisted with strategies for Lawley's surety and bond business. Belizaire possesses diverse leadership experience and will continue to develop relationships with clients to minimize their cost of risk. Belizaire holds a NYS Property & Casualty Brokers License, a NYS Notary License, and earned degrees from Medgar Evers College and Baruch College.

With 15+ locations and continued growth efforts across the footprint, Lawley protects assets and minimizes risk to help customers avoid financial hardship. Lawley provides more than 50 specialized services, including business insurance, home and auto insurance, Medicare insurance coverage, retirement planning, wealth management, and employee benefits administration.

“We’re excited for Phil and Joe to join our team and welcome Carl to the sales division. Their industry knowledge and expertise makes our team even stronger and will greatly benefit our clients in WNY and across our entire footprint,” says Mike Lawley, Principal of Lawley.

Press Release:

Oxbo, a leader in specialty harvesting and controlled application equipment, is pleased to announce it has been selected to join the inaugural class of affiliate members of the National Grape Research Alliance (NGRA), an industry-led nonprofit organization that aligns the priorities for research for the U.S. grape and wine industry.  

For the first time in its nearly 20-year history, NGRA this year is opening a new level of membership offered only to select service and equipment providers, or industry affiliates, by invitation only. NGRA members thoughtfully chose trusted companies known for their research orientation, high integrity and strong reputation for excellence to join the esteemed organization. No more than a dozen affiliate members will be brought aboard in 2024.  

Oxbo was nominated by Randy Heinzen, President of Vineyard Professional Services and an At-Large Board Member for the NGRA. Vineyard Professional Services is also a long-time customer of Oxbo.  

“In this difficult winegrape market, VPS believes the path to success involves focusing on quality and innovation. Innovation is pushed through organizations like NGRA, while quality is enhanced through using superior technology and automation, including the Oxbo select-sort machine harvesters,” said Heinzen. “Oxbo’s inclusion as a NGRA partner is a natural fit for VPS’s goals of producing the best winegrapes possible through integrating the most recent science with the best tools for the job.”

“Oxbo equipment has empowered many grape scientists to find solutions to some of the grape and wine industry’s most critical viticultural challenges,” said NGRA President Donnell Brown. “The company is an integral part of the grape research ecosystem. We are thrilled to count them as one of our very first affiliate members.”

“We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity to collaborate with the NGRA and contribute to the industry-leading research they support,” said Cory Venable, Director of Marketing & Sales for Oxbo’s fruit portfolio. “It's truly exciting to be part of an organization that is making a significant impact on the grape and wine industry. We look forward to bringing our expertise to the table and working alongside such dedicated professionals to drive innovation and excellence in the market.”

In its fruit portfolio, Oxbo supplies grape, berry, coffee, olive, pistachio, and tomato growers with harvesters and other specialty equipment.  

For more information on the full line of Oxbo vineyard products, please visit www.oxbo.com.

Press Release:

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM) (“GHM” or the “Company”), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy, and process industries, today reported financial results for its first quarter for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024 (“fiscal 2025”). Results for the quarter include the P3 Technologies, LLC (“P3”) acquisition, which closed on November 9, 2023.

“We are delivering consistent improvement, solid growth and strengthening profitability,” commented Daniel J. Thoren, President and Chief Executive Officer.  “We believe our solid results reflect the commitment and discipline of the GHM team, the confidence our customers have bestowed on us and the effectiveness of our strategy to build better companies.  In addition to the visibility our nearly $400 million in backlog provides, it is worth noting that the growth of our defense business has also reduced our economic sensitivity as we receive a steady flow of program renewals and new opportunities with the U.S. Navy.  In fact, we will be breaking ground this month on a new 29,000 square foot facility in Batavia, NY to provide production efficiencies, and increased capabilities and capacity to support our defense customer’s needs.”

He concluded, “These are exciting times at Graham Corp.  We are steadily advancing our plan, delivering on our targets and are strategically positioning for continued growth.”  

Press Release:

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM) (“GHM” or “the Company”), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission critical fluid, power, heat transfer, and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy, and process industries, today announced that it was awarded three contracts with a combined value of over $65 million. 

Matthew Malone, Vice President, Graham Corporation and General Manager - Barber-Nichols, commented, “We believe the investments we have made in our engineering and operations to expand our capacity and increase our capabilities to serve the defense and space industries led to our being awarded these contracts.  We differentiated our solutions through our strong customer relationships, engineering expertise, precision manufacturing capabilities and rigorous testing and qualification processes. Our solutions are vital components that meet the high-level performance requirements for mission critical applications. We appreciate our customers’ confidence to select us for these high-value projects.”

Press Release:

Tompkins Financial Corp. (Tompkins) announced that Eric Taylor has joined the company as Executive Vice President and President of Tompkins Financial Advisors. Taylor has spent his career in wealth management and brings extensive experience in investment and advisory services. 

His background includes strategic oversight and management of client-facing investment advisors, portfolio managers and financial planners. In addition, he brings in-depth knowledge of investment planning and portfolio implementation, as well as investment oversight and compliance.

In his new role, Taylor will lead Tompkins Financial Advisors, a holistic financial services firm with over 130 years of experience, bringing customized wealth management, financial planning and trust solutions to individuals and businesses. He will report to Steve Romaine, president and CEO of Tompkins Financial.  

Romaine commented, “It is my pleasure to welcome Eric to the Tompkins team. In addition to his experience in the wealth arena, he brings a vision consistent with the Tompkins model of always placing the client at the center of everything we do. Most importantly, we share a common set of values and culture. Eric started his early career with us as a trust officer and I have enjoyed watching his growth and progression over the years. I’m pleased to welcome him back in this senior role, and as a member of my senior leadership team, contributing to strategic issues across the company.”

A long-time resident of Ithaca, New York, Taylor is a graduate of the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University and holds a Master of Business Administration. He also spent his undergraduate years at Cornell earning a Bachelor of Arts in Policy Analysis and Management.

Press Release:

Tompkins Financial Corporation ("Tompkins" or the "Company") reported diluted earnings per share of $1.10 for the second quarter of 2024, down 6.8% from the immediate prior quarter, and up 86.4% from diluted earnings per share of $0.59 reported in the second quarter of 2023. Net income for the second quarter of 2024 was $15.7 million, down $1.2 million or 7.1% compared to the most recent prior quarter, and up $7.2 million, or 85.0%, when compared to the $8.5 million reported for the same period in 2023.  The increase in diluted earnings per share and net income compared to the results for the second quarter of 2023 largely reflects the Company's sale of $80.9 million of available-for-sale securities which resulted in a $7.1 million (or $0.37 per share) loss on securities transactions in the second quarter of 2023.

For the six months ended June 30, 2024, diluted earnings per share were $2.29, up 18.0% from $1.94 for the six months ended June 30, 2023.  Year-to-date net income was $32.6 million for the six month period ended June 30, 2024, up $4.7 million, or 16.9%, when compared to $27.9 million for the same six month period in 2023.  The growth in year-to-date diluted earnings per share and net income relative to the year-to-date results for the same six month period in 2023 is similarly attributable to the impact caused by the loss on securities transactions described above.

Tompkins President and CEO, Stephen Romaine, commented, "Our year to date and second quarter results have been positively impacted by a stabilizing net interest margin and growth throughout our business. Year over year loans are up 7.7% and year to date noninterest income was up 33%, or 10% excluding the impact from the loss on the sale of securities in the second quarter of 2023.  We have remained focused on expenses with noninterest expenses year to date lower by 2.3%.  As we continue to leverage our balance sheet we are seeing strengthening operating results with stabilizing and growing revenue and lower expenses.  We look forward to driving growth through quality customer relationships supported by our strong capital and liquidity."

SELECTED HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE PERIOD:

• Net interest margin for the second quarter of 2024 was 2.73%, unchanged from the first quarter of 2024, and down from 2.83% for the second quarter of 2023.
• Total cost of funds was up 10 basis points compared to the first quarter 2024, down from a 24 basis point increase from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024. 
• Fee-based services (insurance, wealth management, service charges on deposit accounts and cards) revenues for the second quarter of 2024 were up $903,000 or 5.0% compared to the second quarter of 2023.
• Total operating expenses of $49.9 million for the second quarter of 2024 were in line with the most recent prior quarter, and down $2.0 million or 3.9% compared to the second quarter of 2023.
• Total loans at June 30, 2024 were up $121.3 million, or 2.2% (8.7% on an annualized basis) compared to the immediate prior quarter, and up $409.5 million, or 7.7%, from June 30, 2023.
• Total deposits at June 30, 2024 were $6.3 billion, down $163.7 million, or 2.5% from March 31, 2024, and $168.8 million, or 2.6%, from June 30, 2023. 
• Loan to deposit ratio at June 30, 2024 was 91.7%, compared to 87.5% for the immediate prior quarter.
• Regulatory Tier 1 capital to average assets was 9.15% at June 30, 2024, up compared to 9.08% reported at March 31, 2024, and down compared to 9.57% at June 30, 2023.

NET INTEREST INCOME

Net interest income was $51.0 million for the second quarter of 2024, up from $50.7 million for the first quarter of 2024, and down from $51.9 million for the second quarter of 2023. Net interest income for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 was impacted by increases in interest expense, which totaled $34.3 million for the second quarter of 2024 compared to $20.0 million for the same period in 2023, partially offset by increased interest and dividend income, which increased by $13.4 million when compared to the second quarter of 2023. 

For the six months ended June 30, 2024, net interest income was $101.6 million, down $4.5 million or 4.3% when compared to the same period in 2023.  

Net interest margin was 2.73% for the second quarter of 2024, unchanged from the first quarter of 2024, and down from the 2.83% reported for the second quarter of 2023. The decrease in net interest margin, when compared to the prior year, was mainly driven by higher funding costs, driven by market rates and higher borrowings due to lower deposit balances, and was partially offset by higher yields on interest earnings assets. 

Average loans for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 were up $65.9 million, or 1.2%, from the first quarter of 2024, and were up $382.8 million, or 7.2%, compared to the prior year second quarter. The increase in average loans over both prior periods was mainly in the commercial real estate and commercial and industrial portfolios. The average yield on interest-earning assets for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 was 4.56%, which was up from 4.47% for the prior quarter ended March 31, 2024, and up from 3.91% for the quarter ended June 30, 2023. 

Average total deposits for the second quarter of 2024 were down $42.9 million, or 0.7%, compared to the first quarter of 2024, and down $128.3 million or 2.0% compared to the same period in 2023.  The decrease compared to the prior quarter was mainly driven by seasonal deposit trends, while the decrease compared to the prior year was largely driven by inflation and persistent rate competition for deposits due to the current interest rate environment and tightening monetary policy.  The cost of interest-bearing deposits of 2.27% for the second quarter of 2024 was up 10 basis points from 2.17% for the first quarter of 2024, and up 86 basis points from 1.41% for the second quarter of 2023.  The ratio of average noninterest bearing deposits to average total deposits for the second quarter of 2024 was 29.1% compared to 28.8% for the first quarter of 2024, and 31.1% for the quarter ended June 30, 2023.  The average cost of interest-bearing liabilities for the second quarter of 2024 of 2.64% represents an increase of 13 basis points over the first quarter of 2024, and an increase of 100 basis points over the same period in 2023.

NONINTEREST INCOME

Noninterest income represented 29.9% of total revenue for the second quarter of 2024 compared to 30.4% for the first quarter of 2024, and 19.6% for the second quarter of 2023.  Noninterest income of $21.8 million for the second quarter of 2024 was up $9.2 million or 72.6% compared to the same period in 2023.  Year-to-date noninterest income of $43.9 million was up $10.9 million or 33.0% compared to the same period in 2023.  The increase in quarterly and year-to-date noninterest income compared to the same periods in 2023 was mainly due to a $7.1 million loss on the sale of available-for-sale securities discussed above.  Also included in the increase in the second quarter of 2024 over the same period prior year are fee-based revenues which included insurance commissions and fees, up $415,000, wealth management fees, up $171,000, service charges on deposit accounts, up $126,000, and card services income, up $191,000.

NONINTEREST EXPENSE

Noninterest expense was $49.9 million for the second quarter of 2024, which was down $2.0 million or 3.9% compared to the second quarter of 2023.  Year-to-date noninterest expense for the period ended June 30, 2024 was $99.8 million, a decrease of $2.3 million or 2.3% compared to the $102.1 million reported for the same period in 2023.  The decrease was mainly driven by lower other expenses (legal fees, marketing expense, professional fees, and travel and meeting expense) and lower salaries, wages and other employee benefits in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. 

INCOME TAX EXPENSE
The provision for income tax expense was $4.9 million for an effective rate of 23.8% for the second quarter of 2024, compared to tax expense of $1.8 million and an effective rate of 17.3% for the same quarter in 2023. For the first six months of 2024, the provision for income tax expense was $10.1 million and the effective tax rate was 23.6% compared to provision expense of $7.7 million and an effective tax rate of 21.6% for the same period in 2023.  Lower tax expense for both the quarter and year-to-date periods in 2023 was mainly a result of lower income associated with the loss on the sale of securities described above.

ASSET QUALITY

The allowance for credit losses represented 0.92% of total loans and leases at June 30, 2024, unchanged from the most recent prior quarter and December 31, 2023. The ratio of the allowance to total nonperforming loans and leases was 84.94% at June 30, 2024, compared to 82.47% at March 31, 2024, and 154.76% at June 30, 2023.  The decrease in the ratio compared to the same prior year period was due to the increase in nonperforming loans and leases discussed in more detail below.

Provision for credit losses for the second quarter of 2024 was $2.2 million compared to provision expense of $2.3 million for the same period in 2023. Provision for credit losses for the six months ended June 30, 2024 was $3.0 million compared to $1.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2023.  The increase in provision expense for the year-to-date period compared to the same period in 2023 was mainly driven by loan growth and changes in off balance sheet reserves driven by an increase in loan pipeline.  Net charge-offs for the second quarter of 2024 were $509,000 compared to net recoveries of $27,000 reported for the same period in 2023.

Nonperforming assets represented 0.79% of total assets at June 30, 2024, down from 0.81% reported at March 31, 2024, and up compared to 0.41% at June 30, 2023. At June 30, 2024, nonperforming loans and leases totaled $62.5 million, compared to $62.7 million at March 31, 2024 and $31.4 million at June 30, 2023. The increase in nonperforming loans and leases at June 30, 2024 compared to results at June 30, 2023 was mainly due to the addition in the fourth quarter of 2023 of one relationship totaling approximately $33.3 million with two commercial real estate properties included in the office space and mixed use properties portion of the commercial real estate portfolio. The Company believes that the existing collateral securing the loans is sufficient to cover the exposure as of June 30, 2024.

Special Mention and Substandard loans and leases totaled $116.2 million at June 30, 2024, compared to $118.7 million reported at March 31, 2024, and $118.1 million reported at June 30, 2023.

CAPITAL POSITION

Capital ratios at June 30, 2024 remained well above the regulatory minimums for well-capitalized institutions. The ratio of total capital to risk-weighted assets was 13.26% at June 30, 2024, compared to 13.43% at March 31, 2024, and 14.48% at June 30, 2023. The ratio of Tier 1 capital to average assets was 9.15% at June 30, 2024, compared to 9.08% at March 31, 2024, and 9.57% at June 30, 2023.

LIQUIDITY POSITION

The Company's liquidity position at June 30, 2024 was stable and consistent with the immediately prior quarter. Liquidity is enhanced by ready access to national and regional wholesale funding sources including Federal funds purchased, repurchase agreements, brokered deposits, Federal Reserve Bank's Discount Window advances and Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLB) advances. The Company maintains ready access to liquidity of $1.4 billion, or 17.3% of total assets at June 30, 2024.  As a member of the FHLB, the Company can use certain unencumbered mortgage-related assets and securities to secure borrowings from the FHLB. At June 30, 2024 the Company had an available borrowing capacity at the FHLB of $661.8 million. Through various programs at the Federal Reserve Bank, the Company has the ability to use certain loans and securities to secure borrowings from the Federal Reserve Bank's Discount Window.  At June 30, 2024 the available borrowing capacity with the Federal Reserve Bank was $137.7 million, secured by loans. In addition to the available borrowing lines at the FHLB and Federal Reserve Bank, at June 30, 2024, the Company maintained $553.3 million of unencumbered securities which could be pledged to further enhance secured borrowing capacity.

Press Release:

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy and process industries, announced that it will release its first quarter fiscal year 2025 financial results before financial markets open on Wednesday, August 7.

The Company will host a conference call and webcast to review its financial and operating results, strategy, and outlook. A question-and-answer session will follow.

First Quarter Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Results Conference Call Wednesday, August 7 at 11 a.m. Eastern Time at 201-689-8560. Internet webcast link and accompanying slide presentation ir.grahamcorp.com.

A telephonic replay will be available from 3 p.m. ET on the day of the teleconference through Wednesday, August 14. To listen to the archived call, dial (412) 317-6671 and enter conference ID number 13746993 or access the webcast replay via the Company’s website at ir.grahamcorp.com, where a transcript will also be posted once available.