BB&T Replenishes Capital, Provides Details On Colonial Deal
August 17 2009 - 1:15PM
Dow Jones News
Aiming to strengthen its capital base following the sizable
acquisition of Colonial Bank, BB&T Corp. (BBT) said Monday it
plans to issue $750 million in common stock.
The Winston-Salem, N.C., bank also disclosed more details on the
loss-sharing agreement it reached with the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corp. for Colonial's troubled loan book, and said it
plans to cut $170 million, or 30%, of the purchased bank's
expenses. It said that integrating Colonial will cost $245
million.
Bank regulators took control of Colonial BancGroup Inc. late
Thursday and sold the Montgomery, Ala., company's main banking unit
to BB&T.
BB&T has been an active acquirer of banks and insurance
brokers for years, and Colonial bolstered BB&T's already strong
position in the South with a bigger market share in Florida and a
sizable presence in Alabama. The acquisition raises BB&T to the
eighth-largest U.S. bank by deposits from the eleventh spot.
On Monday, BB&T started to price a secondary stock offering
to replenish its capital base. Regulators keep a keen eye on
capital, and the $750 million stock offering, along with $575
million of trust preferred securities issued in July, will lift
BB&T's Tier 1 common capital ratio to 8.6%, from 8.4% on June
30.
In June, the bank was among the first to pay back $3.1 billion
it had received from the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset
Relief Program.
BB&T's shares rallied almost 10% Friday with news of the
Colonial deal. The stock was down 4.5% in early afternoon trading
Monday, to $26.90, amid a broader stock market decline.
Colonial collapsed under the weight of souring residential
construction loans in troubled markets like Florida and Georgia.
BB&T, which acquired about $22 billion of Colonial's $25
billion of assets, said the FDIC covers 80% up to $5 billion in
losses related to loans it cannot collect, and 95% for further
losses up to $14.3 billion. Assets not covered by the loss-sharing
agreement include securities and a small portfolio of consumer
loans.
Albert Savastano of Fox-Pitt Kelton Cochran Caronia Waller
upgraded BB&T's shares to "in line" from "underperform" on
Monday. In his research report, he wrote BB&T "is still behind
peers in terms of recognizing credit losses" but "the Colonial
acquisition boosts the near term and long-term earnings
prospects."
Dick Bove of Rochdale Securities LLC was skeptical about the
value of the deal for BB&T after it was announced, and, upon
reviewing the new details disclosed Monday morning, said in an
interview that "the deal looks worse" - in part because he had not
anticipated the capital raise. Bove said BB&T might be able to
issue the new stock at around $25, and advises clients to short the
shares.
He said the loss-sharing agreement could still end up costing
BB&T $1.5 billion. Colonial might dilute BB&T's earnings
for three years, he said.
Like several analysts, he expects Colonial deposits to run off
because BB&T is unlikely to pay interest rates as high as
Colonial. Bove estimated that a minimum of 15% and as much as 25%
of the acquired $20 billion of deposits could leave BB&T.
"Colonial's image was damaged," and there is danger that the damage
could spill over to impact BB&T, Bove said.
BB&T's chief financial officer, Daryl Bible, said in an
interview late Friday that he expects some deposit attrition, but
that BB&T has proven this year that it can steal market share
away from competitors by offering better service, and the bank
intends to use the same skills at Colonial.
According to Bible, the acquisition is "strategically and
financially compelling," and the loss sharing agreement leaves
BB&T with "minimal risk."
BB&T is expanding in markets such as Florida, which Bible
conceded is troubled at the moment but attractive longer term.
-By Matthias Rieker, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2471;
matthias.rieker@dowjones.com