3. BUSINESS COMBINATIONS

Beneficial Bancorp, Inc.

On March 1, 2019, we closed the acquisition of Beneficial. In accordance with the terms of the merger agreement, the consideration received by Beneficial stockholders consisted of 0.3013 shares of WSFS common stock and $2.93 in cash for each share of Beneficial common stock. Based on the February 28, 2019 closing share price of $43.28, the value of the stock consideration was $950.0 million and cash consideration was $228.2 million, for total transaction value of $1.2 billion. Results of the combined entity’s operations are included in our Consolidated Financial Statements since the date of the acquisition.

Beneficial conducted its primary business operations through its wholly owned subsidiary, Beneficial Bank, which was merged into WSFS Bank. At closing, Beneficial had 74 branches and offices in southeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. WSFS acquired Beneficial to expand the scale and efficiency of its operations in the Philadelphia, southeastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey markets, and to create opportunities to generate additional revenue by providing its full suite of banking, mortgage banking, wealth management and insurance services to the legacy Beneficial markets.

The acquisition of Beneficial was accounted for as a business combination using the acquisition method of accounting and, accordingly, the assets acquired, liabilities assumed and consideration transferred were recorded at their estimated fair values as of the acquisition date. The excess of consideration transferred over the fair value of net assets acquired was recorded as goodwill, which is not amortizable nor deductible for tax purposes. The Company allocated the total balance of goodwill to its WSFS Bank segment. While the valuation of acquired assets and liabilities is nearly completed, the values of certain assets and liabilities are preliminary in nature, and are subject to adjustment as additional information is obtained about the facts and circumstances that existed at the acquisition date. When the valuation is final, any changes to the preliminary valuation of acquired assets and liabilities could result in adjustments to identified intangibles and goodwill. The fair values of assets acquired and liabilities assumed is expected to be finalized during the measurement period, which ends one year from the closing date.

The following table summarizes the consideration transferred and the fair values of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed:



(Dollars in thousands)	Fair Value
Consideration Transferred:
Common shares issued (21,816,355)	$	949,968
Cash paid to Beneficial stock and option holders	228,239
Value of consideration	1,178,207
Assets acquired:
Cash and due from banks	304,557
Investment securities	616,703
Loans and leases, net	3,712,157
Premises and equipment	69,132
Deferred income taxes	19,470
Bank owned life insurance	82,510
Core deposit intangible	85,053
Servicing rights intangible	2,466
Other assets	135,474
Total assets	5,027,522
Liabilities assumed:
Deposits	4,055,716
Other liabilities	103,085
Total liabilities	4,158,801
Net assets acquired:	868,721
Goodwill resulting from acquisition of Beneficial	$	309,486

In many cases, the fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed were determined by estimating the cash flows expected to result from those assets and liabilities and discounting them at appropriate market rates.

Acquired loans are initially recorded at their fair values as of the acquisition date. The fair value is based on a discounted cash flow methodology that uses assumptions as to credit risk, default rates, collateral values, loss severity, along with estimated prepayment rates. Loans that have deteriorated in credit quality since their origination, and for which it is probable that all contractual cash flows will not be received, are accounted for in accordance with ASC 310-30, Loans and Debt Securities Acquired with Deteriorated Credit Quality. For additional information regarding purchased impaired loans, see Note 7 to the unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company acquired Beneficial’s investment portfolio with a fair value of $616.7 million, of which $578.8 million of investment securities were sold subsequent to closing. The proceeds received for the investments sold approximated their fair values as of the acquisition date. The fair value of the retained investment portfolio was determined by taking into account market prices obtained from independent valuation source(s). See Note 15 for additional information.

The Company recorded a deferred income tax asset (DTA) of $19.5 million related to tax attributes of Beneficial along with the effects of fair value adjustments resulting from acquisition accounting for the combination.

WSFS recorded $85.1 million of core deposit intangibles which are being amortized over ten years using a straight-line amortization methodology. The fair value of core deposit intangibles was determined based on modeling assumptions that take into consideration customer attrition, deposit interest rates, and alternative costs of funds.

Certificates of deposit accounts were valued by segregating the portfolio into pools based on remaining maturity and comparing the contractual cost of the portfolio to an identical portfolio bearing current market rates. The valuation adjustment will be accreted or amortized to interest expense over the remaining maturities of the respective pools.

Direct costs related to the acquisition were expensed as incurred. As a result of the merger, the Company developed a comprehensive integration plan under which we have begun to incur costs, including costs to terminate contracts, consolidate facilities and relocate Associates. Costs related to the acquisition and restructuring are presented in the “Corporate Development” and “Restructuring” expense line items, respectively, on the Consolidated Statements of Income.

During the fourth quarter of 2018, WSFS announced a retail banking office optimization plan that includes the consolidation of 14 Beneficial and 11 WSFS Bank banking offices, which we expect to begin during the third quarter of 2019. Additionally, on February 2, 2019, WSFS and Beneficial entered into an agreement to sell five Beneficial branches in New Jersey to the Bank of Princeton. The sale of the branches is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed during the second quarter of 2019.