Sterling Bank Reports Third Quarter Earnings

Sterling Bank Reports Third Quarter Earnings 


MOUNT LAUREL, N.J., Nov. 10  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sterling Bank, , today
reported a 43.8% increase in income before taxes for the nine month period
ending on September 30, 2003, amounting to $558,000, as compared to income
before taxes of $388,000 for the same period of 2002. Total assets expanded to
$216,907,000, an increase of 7.4% over total assets of $201,906,000 as of
December 31, 2002.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2003, net income totaled $340,000,
compared to $309,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2002. Increased net
income for the first nine months of 2003 was attributable primarily to an
increase in net interest income of $425,000 and an increase in non-interest
income of $124,000, partially offset by an increase in non-interest expenses of
$356,000 and an increase in tax expense of $139,000.

Net interest income for the nine months ended September 30, 2003 totaled
$5,726,000, an increase of 8.0% over $5,301,000 for the nine months ended
September 30, 2002, resulting from an increase in interest income of $141,000
and a decrease in interest expense of $284,000 for the nine-month period ended
September 30, 2003, compared to the same period in 2002.

Non-interest income increased $124,000 or 21.1% for the nine months ended
September 30, 2003 to $713,000, up from $589,000 for the same period of 2002,
reflecting mainly an increase in miscellaneous fees.  Mortgage origination fees,
BOLI income and other fee income accounted for 90.3% of the increase.

The provision for loan losses was $90,000 for the nine months ended September
30, 2003, compared to $67,000 for the same period in 2002.  The increase in the
provision for the 2003 period was due to the higher level of loan growth.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2003, non-interest expenses increased by
$356,000, or 6.6%, to $5,791,000, compared to $5,435,000 for the same period of
2002.  This increase is primarily attributable to higher compensation expenses
of $341,000, or 12.3%, relating to personnel costs as a result of increased
commissions for the Mortgage Origination Program and the Specialized Lending
Group.

Diluted earnings per share for the first nine months of 2003 totaled $0.19,
compared to $0.20 per share for the same period of 2002.  This decrease in
diluted earnings per share is primarily attributable to an increase in the
number of shares outstanding which resulted from the previously announced
completion by the Bank, during the week ending August 20, 2003, of an
underwritten public offering of a total of 1,150,000 shares of its Common Stock,
at a price of $7.00 per share (the "Stock Offering").  The Bank received net
proceeds from the offering of approximately $7,237,000.

For the three months ended September 30, 2003, net income totaled $133,000,
compared to $166,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2002. Decreased
net income for the three months ended September 30, 2003 is attributable
primarily to an increase in tax expense of $15,000, an increase in non-interest
expenses of $114,000 and a decrease in non-interest income of $41,000, which was
partially offset by an increase in net interest income of $137,000.

Net interest income for the three months ended September 30, 2003 totaled
$1,982,000, an increase of 7.4% over $1,845,000 for the three months ended
September 30, 2002.  Interest expense decreased by $141,000, which was partially
offset by a decrease in interest income of $4,000 for the three- month period
ended September 30, 2003, compared to the same period in 2002.

Non-interest income decreased $41,000, or 16.2%, for the three months ended
September 30, 2003 to $212,000, down from $253,000 for the same period of 2002,
reflecting mainly a decrease in gains on sales of securities of $56,000, from
$84,000 to $28,000.  This was partially offset by an increase in miscellaneous
fee income of $13,000, due mainly to an increase in mortgage origination fees.

The provision for loan losses was $30,000 for the three months ended September
30, 2003 and 2002.

For the three months ended September 30, 2003, non-interest expenses increased
by $114,000, or 6.2%, to $1,945,000, compared to $1,831,000 for the same period
of 2002.  Compensation expenses increased by $98,000, or 10.5%, relating to
personnel costs for staffing increases to support loan and deposit growth.

Diluted earnings per share for the three months ended September 30, 2003 totaled
$0.06, compared to $0.11 per share for the same period of 2002.  This decrease
in diluted earnings per share is due in large part to an increase in the number
of shares outstanding that resulted from the Stock Offering.

Total assets increased to $216,907,000 at September 30, 2003, compared to
$201,906,000 at December 31, 2002, increasing $15,001,000 or 7.4%.  Loans
outstanding (including loans held for sale) increased $11,835,000 or 8.5%. Total
deposits increased by $12,501,000 or 6.8%.  Shareholders' equity increased by
$7,383,000 or 60.3%, driven by the Stock Offering and net income of $340,000 for
the nine months ended September 30, 2003, and partially offset by a decrease of
$194,000 in accumulated other comprehensive income resulting from the decline in
market value of securities classified as available-for- sale.

The allowance for loan losses was $747,000 at September 30, 2003 as compared to
$662,000 at December 31, 2002.  The ratio of the allowance for loan losses to
total loans increased slightly to .49% at September 30, 2003, from .47% at
December 31, 2002.  The Bank continues to monitor its allowance for possible
loan losses and will make future additions or reductions in light of the level
of loans in its portfolio and as economic conditions dictate. The current level
of the allowance for loan losses is the result of management's assessment of the
risks within the portfolio based on the information generated in credit
monitoring processes and activities.

Non-performing assets, expressed as a percentage of total assets, decreased to
0.0% at September 30, 2003, down from 0.03% at December 31, 2002. At September
30, 2003 and December 31,2002, there were no non-accruing loans.

Sterling Bank is a community bank headquartered in Burlington County, New
Jersey, with assets of $216.9 million as of September 30, 2003. Sterling Bank's
main office is located in Mount Laurel, New Jersey and its five other Community
Banking Centers are located in Burlington and Camden Counties. Sterling began
operations in December 1990 with the purpose of serving consumers and small to
medium-sized businesses in its market area.  The Bank's deposits are insured by
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to the applicable regulatory limits
per depositor.  Sterling Bank is a member of the Federal Reserve System. The
common stock of Sterling Bank is traded on the NASDAQ Small Cap Market under the
symbol "STNJ".

Forward-Looking Statements

Sterling Bank may from time to time make written or oral "forward-looking
statements" including statements contained in this summary and in other
communications by Sterling Bank, which are made in good faith pursuant to the
"safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995.  These forward-looking statements, such as statements of the Bank's plans,
objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions, involve risks and
uncertainties and are subject to change based on various important factors (some
of which are beyond the Bank's control).  The following factors, among others,
could cause the Bank's financial performance to differ materially from the
plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in such
forward-looking statements: the strength of the United States economy in general
and the strength of the local economies in which the Bank conducts operations;
the effects of, and changes in, trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws,
including interest rate policies of the Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System, inflation, interest rate, market and monetary fluctuations; the
timely development of and acceptance of new products and services of the Bank
and the perceived overall value of these products and services by users,
including the features, pricing and quality compared to competitors' products
and services; the impact of changes in financial services' laws and regulations
(including laws concerning taxes, banking, securities and insurance);
technological changes; acquisitions; changes in consumer spending and saving
habits; and the effectiveness of Sterling Bank in managing the risks involved in
the foregoing.

Sterling Bank cautions that the foregoing list of important factors is not
exclusive.  Sterling Bank also cautions readers not to place undue reliance on
these forward-looking statements, which reflect management's analysis only as of
the date on which they are given.  The Bank is not obligated to publicly revise
or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances
that arise after any such date.  Readers should carefully review the risk
factors described in other documents the Bank files from time to time with the
Federal Reserve, including the Bank's Offering Circular dated August 11, 2003,
future quarterly reports on Form 10-QSB, future annual reports on Form 10-KSB
and any current reports on Form 8-K. 

DATASOURCE: Sterling Bank



CONTACT:  Robert H. King, President, [phone],

, or R. Scott Horner, Executive Vice President,

[phone], , both of Sterling Bank



Web site:  http://www.sterlingnj.com/

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