MICHIGAN CITY, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Horizon Bancorp (NASDAQ: HBNC) (“Horizon”), the parent of Horizon Bank,
N.A., (“Horizon Bank”) today announced the completion of the acquisition
of LaPorte Bancorp, Inc. (“LaPorte Bancorp”) and its wholly-owned
subsidiary, The LaPorte Savings Bank, of LaPorte, Indiana, effective
July 18, 2016. LaPorte Bancorp was merged into Horizon immediately
followed by the merger of The LaPorte Savings Bank into Horizon Bank.
Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, shareholders of LaPorte Bancorp
had the option to receive $17.50 per share in cash or 0.629 shares of
Horizon common stock, or a combination of both, for each share of
LaPorte Bancorp’s common stock, subject to allocation provisions to
assure that in aggregate, LaPorte Bancorp shareholders received total
consideration that consists of 65% stock and 35% cash. As a result of
LaPorte stockholder stock and cash elections and the related proration
provisions of the Merger Agreement, Horizon issued 2,280,992 shares of
its common stock in the merger. Based upon the July 15, 2016 closing
price of $26.31 per share of Horizon common stock, the transaction has
an implied valuation of approximately $98.9 million.
Bringing together two of the largest community banks in LaPorte County,
this merger further expands Horizon Bank’s branch network to fifty-four
offices throughout northern and central Indiana and southern Michigan.
“As two long standing community banks within LaPorte County holding
similar core values, we are confident that this merger will prove
beneficial to our customers and the community,” said Craig M. Dwight,
Horizon Bank’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
Michele Thompson, President & Chief Financial Officer of LaPorte Bancorp
stated, “We are excited about joining the Horizon Bank family and look
forward to the increased opportunities this union will provide our
existing customers, employees and the communities we have served over
the years. I believe that our shared philosophy will help to ensure that
a major and growing community bank remains in the LaPorte area.”
As previously announced, the banks will ultimately operate under the
name Horizon Bank, although the current offices of The LaPorte Savings
Bank will continue to operate under that name until the systems
integration process is completed in October of 2016. The companies are
finalizing integration plans that include a systems integration and sign
change expected to take place the weekend of October 22, 2016. As a
result, customer accounts will automatically change to Horizon accounts
with no action required on the part of the customer. Customer checks,
direct deposits, payments, and account numbers will remain unchanged in
order to make this transition as smooth as possible.
Due to the shared markets served by both banks, three full-service
offices and one loan production office will be consolidated upon the
completion of the systems integration scheduled for October, 2016. The
offices to be consolidated are The LaPorte Savings Bank’s Indiana
branches in Michigan City, Chesterton, and The LaPorte Savings Bank’s
West side location and its St. Joseph, Michigan loan production office.
Each office to be closed is within 1.5 miles of an office that will
remain open. As part of this office consolidation, Horizon has retained
the retail branch personnel. This will help to ensure proper support to
assist with customer retention and integration. By 2017, Horizon expects
office staffing to be right-sized through normal branch attrition and
retirements.
As part of the merger, Horizon and Horizon Bank have added Michele
Thompson to their respective boards of directors and will add two
representatives to Horizon’s existing LaPorte County community advisory
board.
Horizon was advised by Stephens, Inc. and the law firm of Barnes &
Thornburg LLP. LaPorte Bancorp was advised by Raymond James &
Associates, Inc. and the law firm of Luse Gorman, PC.
About Horizon Bancorp
Horizon Bancorp is a locally owned, independent, commercial bank holding
company serving northern and central Indiana and southwest and central
Michigan through its commercial banking subsidiary Horizon Bank, N.A.
Horizon also offers mortgage-banking services throughout the Midwest.
Horizon may be reached online at www.horizonbank.com.
Its common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the
symbol HBNC.
About LaPorte Bancorp, Inc.
LaPorte Bancorp, Inc. is an Indiana corporation headquartered in
LaPorte, Indiana with The LaPorte Savings Bank as its wholly owned
subsidiary. The LaPorte Savings Bank was founded in 1871 and offers a
full range of banking services with seven branch locations serving
northeast Indiana and a loan production office in Saint Joseph,
Michigan. LaPorte Bancorp may be reached online at www.laportesavingsbank.com.
Its common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol
LPSB.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding the
financial performance, business prospects, growth and operating
strategies of Horizon and LaPorte Bancorp. For these statements, Horizon
and LaPorte Bancorp claim the protections of the safe harbor for
forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this press release should
be considered in conjunction with the other information available about
Horizon and LaPorte Bancorp, including the information in the filings
each makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking
statements provide current expectations or forecasts of future events
and are not guarantees of future performance. The forward-looking
statements are based on management’s expectations and are subject to a
number of risks and uncertainties. Horizon and LaPorte Bancorp have
tried, wherever possible, to identify such statements by using words
such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” “plan,”
“believe,” “will” and similar expressions in connection with any
discussion of future operating or financial performance.
Although Horizon’s and LaPorte Bancorp’s management believe that the
expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are
reasonable, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or
implied in such statements. Risks and uncertainties that could cause
actual results to differ materially include risk factors relating to the
banking industry and the other factors detailed from time to time in
Horizon’s and LaPorte Bancorp’s respective Annual Reports on Form 10-K
and other periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements,
which speak only as of the date hereof. Horizon and LaPorte Bancorp do
not undertake, and specifically disclaim any obligation, to publicly
release the result of any revisions that may be made to update any
forward-looking statement to reflect the events or circumstances after
the date on which the forward-looking statement is made, or reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events, except to the extent required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160718005206/en/
Horizon Contact Information:
Craig M. Dwight
Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer
Phone: (219) 873-2725
or
Mark
E. Secor
Chief Financial Officer
Phone: (219) 873-2611
Fax:
(219) 874-9280
or
LaPorte Bancorp Contact Information:
Michele
M. Thompson
President and Chief Financial Officer
Phone: (219)
362-7511
Source: Horizon Bancorp