Accounting Policies, by Policy (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

ASU 2015-14 – Revenue from Contracts with Customers: Deferral of the Effective Date (“ASU 2015-14”). ASU 2015-14 is an update to the effective date in ASU 2014-09 – Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2014-09”). ASU2014-09 provides guidance that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. ASU 2015-14 is effective prospectively, for annual and interim periods, beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this standard will have on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

ASU 2014-17 – Business Combinations: Pushdown Accounting (“ASU 2014-17”). ASU 2014-17 amends existing guidance related to the accounting by an acquired entity upon a change-in-control event. The standard provides an acquired entity with an option to apply pushdown accounting in its separate financial statements upon occurrence of an event in which an acquirer obtains control of the acquired entity. An acquired entity may elect the option to apply pushdown accounting in the reporting period in which the change-in-control event occurs. If pushdown accounting is not applied in the reporting period in which the change-in-control event occurs, an acquired entity will have the option to elect to apply pushdown accounting in a subsequent reporting period to the acquired entity’s most recent change-in-control event. ASU 2014-17 was effective on November 18, 2014. The adoption of this standard has not had a material effect on the Company’s operating results or financial condition.

ASU 2014-14 – Receivables – Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors: Classification of Certain Government-Guaranteed Mortgage Loans Upon Foreclosure (“ASU 2014-14”). ASU 2014-14 amends existing guidance related to the classification of certain government-guaranteed mortgage loans, including those guaranteed by the FHA and the VA, upon foreclosure. It requires that a mortgage loan be derecognized and a separate other receivable be recognized upon foreclosure if three conditions are met. Upon foreclosure, the separate other receivable should be measured based on the amount of the loan balance (principal and interest) expected to be recovered from the guarantor. ASU 2014-14 is effective for annual periods, and interim periods within those annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2014, and early adoption is permitted. It can be applied using a prospective transition method or a modified retrospective transition using a cumulative-effect adjustment. The adoption of this standard has not had a material effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

ASU 2014-12 – Compensation – Stock Compensation – Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved After the Requisite Service Period (“ASU 2014-12”). ASU 2014-12 amends existing guidance related to the accounting for share-based payments when the terms of an award provide that a performance target could be achieved after the requisite service period. The standard requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period should be treated as a performance condition. ASU 2014-12 is effective for annual periods and interim periods within those annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015, and early adoption is permitted. It can be applied either prospectively to all awards granted or modified after the effective date or retrospectively to all awards with performance targets that are outstanding as of the beginning of the earliest annual period presented in the financial statements and to all new or modified awards thereafter. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material effect on the Company’s operating results or financial condition.

ASU 2014-11 – Transfers and Servicing – Repurchase-to-Maturity Transactions, Repurchase Financings, and Disclosures (“ASU 2014-11”). ASU 2014-11 aligns the accounting for repurchase-to-maturity transactions and repurchase agreements executed as a repurchase financing with the accounting for other typical repurchase agreements. ASU 2014-11 requires that these transactions all be accounted for as secured borrowings. The standard requires a new disclosure for transactions economically similar to repurchase agreements in which the transferor retains substantially all of the exposure to the economic return on the transferred financial assets throughout the term of the transaction and requires expanded disclosures about the nature of collateral pledged in repurchase agreements and similar transactions accounted for as secured borrowings. ASU 2014-11 is effective for the first interim or annual period beginning after December 15, 2014. An entity is required to present changes in accounting for transactions outstanding on the effective date as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the period of adoption. Earlier application for a public business entity is prohibited. The adoption of this standard did not have a material effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

ASU 2014-04 – Receivables – Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors (“ASU 2014-04”). ASU 2014-04 clarifies when a creditor should reclassify mortgage loans collateralized by residential real estate from loans to other real estate owned. It defines when an in-substance repossession or foreclosure has occurred and when a creditor is considered to have received physical possession of residential real estate collateralizing a mortgage loan. ASU 2014-04 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 31, 2014, and early adoption is permitted. It can be applied either prospectively or using a modified retrospective transition method. The adoption of this standard has not had a material effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

There have been no other significant changes to the Company’s accounting policies from the 2014 Form 10-K.  Presently, the Company is not aware of any other changes to the Accounting Standards Codification that will have a material impact on the Company’s present or future financial position or results of operations.

Business Combinations Policy [Policy Text Block]

Acquisition Accounting, Acquired Loans

The Company accounts for its acquisitions under ASC Topic 805, Business Combinations, which requires the use of the purchase method of accounting. All identifiable assets acquired, including loans, are recorded at fair value. No allowance for loan losses related to the acquired loans is recorded on the acquisition date as the fair value of the loans acquired incorporates assumptions regarding credit risk. Loans acquired are recorded at fair value in accordance with the fair value methodology prescribed in ASC Topic 820. The fair value estimates associated with the loans include estimates related to expected prepayments and the amount and timing of undiscounted expected principal, interest and other cash flows.

The Company evaluates loans acquired in accordance with the provisions of ASC Topic 310-20, Nonrefundable Fees and Other Costs. The fair value discount on these loans is accreted into interest income over the weighted average life of the loans using a constant yield method. These loans are not considered to be impaired loans. The Company evaluates purchased impaired loans in accordance with the provisions of ASC Topic 310-30, Loans and Debt Securities Acquired with Deteriorated Credit Quality. Purchased loans are considered impaired if there is evidence of credit deterioration since origination and if it is probable that not all contractually required payments will be collected.

For impaired loans accounted for under ASC Topic 310-30, we continue to estimate cash flows expected to be collected on those loans. We evaluate at each balance sheet date whether the present value of the loans determined using the effective interest rates has decreased significantly and if so, recognize a provision for loan loss in our consolidated statement of income. For any significant increases in cash flows expected to be collected, we adjust the amount of accretable yield recognized on a prospective basis over the remaining life of the loan.

Deteriorated Loans Transferred in, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Covered Loans and Related Indemnification Asset

In September, we entered into an agreement with the FDIC to terminate all loss share agreements which were entered into in 2010 and 2012 in conjunction with the Company’s acquisition of substantially all of the assets (“covered assets”) and assumption of substantially all of the liabilities of four failed banks in FDIC-assisted transactions. Under the early termination, all rights and obligations of the Company and the FDIC under the FDIC loss share agreements, including the clawback provisions and the settlement of loss share and expense reimbursement claims, have been resolved and terminated.

Under the terms of the agreement, the FDIC made a net payment of $2,368,000 to the bank as consideration for the early termination of the loss share agreements. The early termination was recorded in the Company’s financial statements by removing the FDIC Indemnification Asset, receivable from FDIC, the FDIC True-up liability and recording a one-time, pre-tax charge of $7,476,000. As a result, the Company reclassified loans previously covered by FDIC loss share to loans acquired, not covered by FDIC loss share. Foreclosed assets previously covered by FDIC loss share were reclassified to foreclosed assets not covered by FDIC loss share.

For further discussion of the Company’s acquisition and loan accounting, see Note 5, Loans Acquired.

Earnings Per Share, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Earnings Per Common Share (“EPS”)

Basic EPS is computed by dividing reported net income available to common shareholders by weighted average number of common shares outstanding during each period.  Diluted EPS is computed by dividing reported net income available to common shareholders by the weighted average common shares and all potential dilutive common shares outstanding during the period.

Following is the computation of earnings per common share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014:

	Three Months Ended September 30,				Nine Months Ended September 30,
(In thousands, except per share data)	2015		2014		2015		2014
Net income available to common shareholders	$	21,598	$	8,788	$	50,325	$	23,049
Average common shares outstanding		29,927		16,873		27,379		16,489
Average potential dilutive common shares		119		44		119		44
Average diluted common shares		30,046		16,917		27,498		16,533
Basic earnings per share	$	0.72	$	0.52	$	1.84	$	1.40
Diluted earnings per share (1)	$	0.72	$	0.52	$	1.83	$	1.39

 (1) EPS are computed independently for each quarter and therefore the sum of each quarterly EPS may not equal the year-to-date EPS. As a result of the large stock issuances during 2015 as part of the Company’s acquisitions, the computed independent quarterly average common shares outstanding and the computed year-to-date average common shares differ significantly. For purposes of calculating a roll-forward amount for year-to-date EPS, diluted EPS for the second quarter would require a computed amount of $0.74, producing a difference of $.02 from actual third quarter diluted EPS of $0.72. This difference is based on the direct result of the varying denominator for each period presented.