Blue Foundry Bancorp (BLFY) Q2 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Blue Foundry Bancorp (NASDAQ:BLFY) Q2 2023 Earnings Conference Call July 26, 2023 11:00 AM ET

Company Participants

Jim Nesci - President and Chief Executive Officer
Kelly Pecoraro - Chief Financial Officer

Conference Call Participants

Justin Crowley - Piper Sandler

Operator

Good morning and welcome to the Blue Foundry Bancorp’s Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Call. My name is Carla and I will be your conference operator today.

Comments made during today’s call may include forward-looking statements, which are based on management’s current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Blue Foundry encourages all participants to refer to the full disclaimer contained in this morning’s earnings release, which has been posted to the Investor Relations page on bluefoundrybank.com. During the call, management will refer to non-GAAP measures, which exclude certain items from reported results. Please refer to today’s earnings release for reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures. As a reminder, this event is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]

I will now turn the call over to President and CEO, Jim Nesci.

Jim Nesci

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone and welcome to our second quarter earnings call. I am joined by our Chief Financial Officer, Kelly Pecoraro, who will share the company’s financial results in greater detail after my opening remarks.

The competition for deposits from both depository and non-depository institutions, along with the inverted yield curve, continues to have an adverse impact on our margin and cost of funds. Despite this top line pressure, we have been pleased to see our investments in technology results and productivity saves.

Quarter-over-quarter, our operating expenses declined $689,000, or 5.1%, driven primarily by lower compensation and benefits expense. Headcount is 9% lower than it was at the end of 2022, and employees have increased productivity by optimizing redundant tasks through the use of technology, allowing them to focus on more impactful projects. Additionally, we