Catalyst Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: "CLST") (the "Company"), the parent company for Catalyst Bank (the "Bank") (www.catalystbank.com), announced today that the Board of Directors approved the Company's fifth share repurchase plan.
"It has been over three years since we embarked on our public company journey. We've set ambitious goals to transform ourselves into a consistently strong performing community bank. High among those goals is focusing our mission on serving as catalysts to help local businesses grow – because when they do, they create jobs in our communities. We rebranded as Catalyst Bank to reinforce our commitment," said Joe Zanco, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and Bank.
"We have expanded our branch network into the business center of our region, adding locations in Carencro and Lafayette, Louisiana. Although we increased our branch count by two, or 50%, we have held our employee count steady by focusing on enhancing efficiency throughout the Company.
"We have upgraded our systems and now offer some of the very best in banking technology. The systems upgrade reduces non-interest expense over $200,000 annually and also facilitates additional efficiency gains.
"Our collective efforts have resulted in meaningful customer growth, especially in 2024. In fact, loan growth through the third quarter was a record $21 million. As a result of organic customer growth and greater efficiency, our core profitability continues to improve.
"Not everything has gone according to plan since our IPO. At the outset of our journey, we believed there might be opportunities to acquire one or more banks during the first three years following our IPO, which would have allowed us to expand our footprint and enhance profitability more rapidly. Unfortunately, the right opportunities have not presented themselves to date. However, we still have the capital and management depth and expertise to take advantage of desirable opportunities should they present themselves in the near future.
"Today, we announced our fifth share repurchase plan (the "November 2024 Repurchase Plan"). Under the November 2024 Repurchase Plan, the Company may purchase up to 215,000 shares, or approximately 5%, of the Company's outstanding common stock. Since the announcement of our first share repurchase plan in January 2023 and through November 22, 2024, the Company has repurchased a total of 972,916 shares of its common stock, or approximately 18% of the common shares originally issued, at an average cost per share of $11.93.
"As we enter the new year, know that we are focused on serving our customers tremendously well, deepening the skills of our employees and enhancing our profitability and shareholder value. What we've achieved since our IPO is the result of the efforts of our dynamic team. Our commitment to growing and further improving our company is stronger than ever."
