SLFI Sterling Financial (MM)

LANCASTER, Pa., May 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Mergent, Inc., a leading provider of global business and financial information on publicly traded companies and fixed income securities, has again named Sterling Financial Corporation a Mergent Dividend Achiever - a recognition reserved for only 3 percent of the dividend paying public companies in the United States. Mergent Dividend Achiever companies are a class of companies that have successfully delivered dividend increases to shareholders for 10 or more consecutive years. Sterling, which has an 18-year record of consecutively increasing shareholder dividends, also was named a Mergent Dividend Achiever in 2003, 2004 and 2005. "Our ability to execute on our customer-focused strategy is why we are able to pay increased dividends year after year," said J. Roger Moyer, Jr., president and chief executive officer of Sterling Financial Corporation. "Sterling employees are highly engaged about serving our customers and want every experience to be an exceptional one. That is what distinguishes us as we turn relationships into partnerships. Engaged employees who focus on our customers drive our growth, and growth drives our revenues and performance." Mergent, Inc., states that "dividend achievers are strong companies with the potential to outperform broad based indices over the long term. In fact, over the past 10 years through (December) 2005, Mergent's Dividend Achievers Index has outperformed the S&P (Standard & Poor's) 500 Index by an annualized rate of 1.8 percent per year." Sterling has declared 5-for-4 stock splits twice in the past two years - first on Jan. 27, 2004, and then again on April 26, 2005. On May 23, 2006, Sterling declared a second quarter dividend of $0.14 -- a 9.4 percent increase over the dividend paid for the second quarter of 2005. With assets of approximately $3.0 billion and investment assets under administration of $2.6 billion, Sterling Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:SLFI) is a diversified financial services company based in Lancaster, Pa. Sterling Banking Services Group affiliates offer a full range of banking services in south-central Pennsylvania, northern Maryland and northern Delaware; the group also offers correspondent banking services in the mid-Atlantic region to other companies within the financial services industry. Sterling Financial Services Group affiliates provide specialty commercial financing; fleet and equipment leasing; investment, trust and brokerage services; insurance services; and human resources consulting services. Visit http://www.sterlingfi.com/ for more information. Banking Services Group -- Banks: Pennsylvania: Bank of Lancaster County, N.A.; Bank of Lebanon County; PennSterling Bank; and Pennsylvania State Bank. Pennsylvania and Maryland: Bank of Hanover and Trust Company. Maryland: First National Bank of North East. Delaware: Delaware Sterling Bank & Trust Company. Correspondent banking services: Correspondent Services Group (provider of Sterling services to other financial institutions). Financial Services Group -- Specialty commercial financing: Equipment Finance LLC (commercial financing company for the forestry, land clearing and construction industries). Fleet and equipment leasing: Town & Country Leasing, LLC (nationwide fleet and equipment leasing company). Trust, investment and brokerage services: Sterling Financial Trust Company (trust and investment services), Church Capital Management, LLC (registered investment advisor) and Bainbridge Securities Inc. (securities broker/dealer). Insurance services: Lancaster Insurance Group, LLC (independent insurance agency for personal, property and business insurance); StoudtAdvisors (employee benefits consulting and brokerage firm); and Sterling Financial Settlement Services, LLC (title insurance agency). Human resources consulting: Professional Services Group (human resources consulting services provider for small to medium size businesses). This news release may contain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results and trends could differ materially from those set forth in such statements due to various factors. Such factors include costs and efforts required to integrate aspects of the operations of the companies being more difficult than expected, anticipated merger-related synergies not being achieved timely or not being achieved at all, the possibility that increased demand or prices for Sterling's financial services and products may not occur, changing economic and competitive conditions, volatility in interest rates, technological developments, costs associated with complying with laws, rules and regulations, and other risks and uncertainties, including those detailed in Sterling's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. DATASOURCE: Sterling Financial Corporation CONTACT: Joe Patterson, Vice President, Director of Corporate Communications, Sterling Financial Corporation, +1-717-735-5651 (office), +1-717-940-2759 (mobile) or Web site: http://www.sterlingfi.com/

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