LB Laurentian Bank of Canada

New medium-term financial targets¹ introduced:

• Double digit adjusted diluted EPS growth
• Double digit adjusted ROE
• Adjusted efficiency ratio of 60% or less
• Positive adjusted operating leverage

MONTREAL, May 31, 2024 /CNW/ - Laurentian Bank of Canada (TSX: LB) ("Laurentian Bank" or the "Bank") today launched "Our Path Forward", its revamped strategic plan, charting the course to a stronger future. It defines the Bank's approach in the financial services sector and outlines what sets it apart from its competition, including its specialized approach to Commercial Banking and a simple, digitally-led everyday banking experience.

The Bank also unveiled its new ambition: foster prosperity for all customers through specialized commercial banking and low-cost banking services to grow savings for middle-class Canadians.

"Our Path Forward, the revamped Strategic Plan we unveiled today, charts the path to a stronger, sustainable, and more profitable Laurentian Bank," said Éric Provost, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Commercial Banking will remain the Bank's growth engine, and we will grow market share in Personal Banking by introducing new, low-cost, value-add products to attract new customers and increase deposits, while simultaneously simplifying our offering."

"Our success will be driven by our focus on execution, by competing in areas where we have a competitive advantage, and by harnessing the power of partnerships," he added. "I am incredibly proud of the dedication and resilience that our employees have shown over the course of the last year, and can say that today, we have the right plan at the right time. Our team is united in its resolve of achieving the objectives we have laid out for ourselves, and we are confident in our path forward."

The Bank forecasts continued growth in lending as a shortage of housing supply and a rebound in consumer confidence drive demand.

These opportunities create significant headroom for growth within the Bank's key specializations, including Inventory Financing, Commercial Real Estate, Equipment Financing and Commercial small and medium size enterprise (SME) Lending.

Commercial Banking objectives:

1. Continue to grow organically and through partnerships;
2. Maximize the value of preexisting ecosystems; and
3. Diversify intro adjacent sectors and specializations.

The Bank will position itself as an alternative bank for middle-class customers that tend to be underserved or under appreciated by other banks, as well as for younger customers, who are more likely to consider switching banks and demand competitive digital banking capabilities.

Gaining market share in this segment will rest on empowering the middle-class through tailored interactions with advisors and best-in-class support, amplifying the customer experience with enhanced self-serve capabilities, and accelerating technology investments, including through partnerships.

Personal Banking objectives:

1. Improve the Bank's product offering, including self-serve options;
2. Simplify the Bank by reducing complexities in order to serve customers more effectively; and
3. Accelerate technology investments and explore partnerships.

The Bank will simplify its Capital Markets franchise to focus on areas where it has the strongest expertise. This includes the Bank's Fixed Income offering, which supports the government's role in investing in people and growing the economy, and its Foreign Exchange offering, to continue supporting Commercial Banking customers.

Technology and Operations consist of two of the Bank's key enablers to achieve the objectives set out in its revamped strategic plan.

In Technology, the Bank will implement a two-pronged approach:

1. Simplifying its technology stack and improving resiliency, while also
2. Enhancing its digital offering to improve the customer experience.  

In Operations, three principles will guide decision-making:

1. "Where we work"
2. "How we work"; and
3. "How we organize our work for customers".

Over the last three years, Laurentian Bank has made significant improvements to its culture. It has:

• reduced annual turnover by approximately 40%, moving it closer to industry standard;
• increased its employee engagement score to approximately 80%, in line with industry average; and
• attracted strong talent from across the industry while recruiting and filling positions in line with industry average.

With its renewed plan, the Bank will evolve its culture to be more impact-oriented, focusing on execution, outcomes, and engagement, and creating an environment where employees continue to be proud of the path forward.

The Bank has established the following medium-term financial targets in connection with its new strategic plan:

Growth Drivers

Financial Targets

"Our strategic path is rooted in our belief that combining our specialized expertise and focus on underserved customers can build a more competitive bank," said Provost. "The work is far from over, but Laurentian is ready for a brighter future."

In addition to financial measures based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), management uses non-GAAP financial measures to assess the Bank's underlying ongoing business performance. Non-GAAP financial measures presented throughout this document are referred to as "adjusted" measures and exclude amounts designated as adjusting items. Adjusting items include the amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets, and certain items of significance that arise from time to time which management believes are not reflective of underlying business performance. Non-GAAP financial measures are not standardized financial measures under the financial reporting framework used to prepare the financial statements of the Bank and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. The Bank believes non-GAAP financial measures are useful to readers in obtaining a better understanding of how management assesses the Bank's performance and in analyzing trends.

Non-GAAP ratios are not standardized financial measures under the financial reporting framework used to prepare the financial statements of the Bank to which the non-GAAP ratios relate and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. Ratios are considered non-GAAP ratios if adjusted measures are used as components, refer to the non-GAAP financial measure section above. The Bank believes non-GAAP ratios are useful to readers in obtaining a better understanding of how management assesses the Bank's performance and in analyzing trends.

Management also uses supplementary financial measures to analyze the Bank's results and in assessing underlying business performance and related trends. Please refer to the Glossary on page 25 of the Second Quarter 2024 Report to Shareholders, including the MD&A for more information about the composition of supplementary financial measures disclosed in this document.

For more information, refer the Non-GAAP financial and other measures section beginning on page 5 of the Second Quarter 2024 Report to Shareholders, including the MD&A for the quarter ended on April 30, 2024, which is incorporated by reference. The MD&A is available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

To access the live video webcast of the Investor Day, participants can connect by registering on the Investor Relations page at laurentianbank.ca.

From time to time, Laurentian Bank of Canada and, as applicable its subsidiaries (collectively referred to as the Bank) will make written or oral forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States (U.S.) securities legislation, including, forward-looking statements contained in the Bank's 2023 Annual Report (2023 Annual Report), the  Management's Discussion and Analysis (the MD&A) for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2023 and in the documents incorporated by reference herein as well as in other documents filed with Canadian and U.S. regulatory authorities, in reports to shareholders, and in other written or oral communications. These forward-looking statements are made in accordance with the "safe harbor" provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements in accordance with, applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation. They include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Bank's vision, strategic goals, business plans and strategies, priorities and financial performance objectives; the economic, market, and regulatory review and outlook for Canadian, U.S. and global economies; the regulatory environment in which the Bank operates; the risk environment, including, credit risk, liquidity, and funding risks; the statements under the heading "Risk Appetite and Risk Management Framework" contained in the 2023 Annual Report, including, the MD&A for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2023, and other statements that are not historical facts .

Forward-looking statements typically are identified with words or phrases such as "believe", "assume", "estimate", "forecast", "outlook", "project", "vision", "expect", "foresee", "anticipate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "aim", "target", and expressions of future or conditional verbs such as "may", "should", "could", "would", "will", "intend" or the negative of any of these terms, variations thereof or similar terminology.

By their very nature, forward-looking statements require the Bank to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific in nature, which give rise to the possibility that the Bank's predictions, forecasts, projections, expectations, or conclusions may prove to be inaccurate; that the Bank's assumptions may be incorrect (in whole or in part); and that the Bank's financial performance objectives, visions, and strategic goals may not be achieved. Forward-looking statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, or indications of whether or not actual results will be achieved. Material economic assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are set out in the 2023 Annual Report under the heading "Outlook", which assumptions are incorporated by reference herein.

The Bank cautions readers against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as a number of factors, many of which are beyond the Bank's control and the effects of which can be difficult to predict or measure, could influence, individually or collectively, the accuracy of the forward-looking statements and cause the Bank's actual future results to differ significantly from the targets, expectations, estimates or intentions expressed in the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to general and market economic conditions; inflationary pressures; the dynamic nature of the financial services industry in Canada, the U.S., and globally; risks relating to credit, market, liquidity, funding, insurance, operational and regulatory compliance (which could lead to the Bank being subject to various legal and regulatory proceedings, the potential outcome of which could include regulatory restrictions, penalties, and fines); reputational risks; legal and regulatory risks; competitive and systemic risks; supply chain disruptions; geopolitical events and uncertainties; government sanctions; conflict, war, or terrorism; and various other significant risks discussed in the risk-related portions of the Bank's 2023 Annual Report, such as those related to: Canadian and global economic conditions (including the risk of higher inflation and rising interest rates); Canadian housing and household indebtedness; technology, information systems and cybersecurity; technological disruption, privacy, data and third party related risks; competition; the Bank's ability to execute on its strategic objectives; digital disruption and innovation (including, emerging fintech competitors); changes in government fiscal, monetary and other policies; tax risk and transparency; fraud and criminal activity; human capital; business continuity; emergence of widespread health emergencies or public health crises; environmental and social risks including, climate change; and various other significant risks, as described beginning on page 38 of the 2023 Annual Report, including the MD&A, which information is incorporated by reference herein. The Bank further cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. When relying on the Bank's forward-looking statements to make decisions involving the Bank, investors, financial analysts, and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors, uncertainties, and current and potential events.

Any forward-looking statements contained herein or incorporated by reference represent the views of management of the Bank only as at the date such statements were or are made, are presented for the purposes of assisting investors, financial  analysts, and others in understanding certain key elements of the Bank's financial position, current objectives, strategic  priorities, expectations and plans, and in obtaining a better understanding of the Bank's business and anticipated financial performance and operating environment and may not be appropriate for other purposes. The Bank does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements made by the Bank or on its behalf whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable securities legislation. Additional information relating to the Bank can be located on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Founded in Montréal in 1846, Laurentian Bank wants to foster prosperity for all customers through specialized commercial banking and low-cost banking services to grow savings for middle-class Canadians.

With a workforce of approximately 2,800 employees, the Bank offers a wide range of financial services and advice-based solutions to customers across Canada and the United States. Laurentian Bank manages $48.4 billion in balance sheet assets and $26.6 billion in assets under administration.

SOURCE Laurentian Bank of Canada