Yankee Farm
Credit Approves Special Cash Patronage
Members to receive $1.8 million mid-year patronage
Williston,
Vermont (August 24, 2018) The Yankee Farm Credit Board of
Directors recently approved the distribution of a mid-year patronage dividend
of $1.8 million to their more than 1,400 members who are involved in farming
and forestry. This distribution equals a return of approximately 30 bps of the
average daily balance on loans.
This special patronage payment is possible because
2018 net income is significantly over budget for the first half of 2018.
Several factors contributed to this positive performance in net income,
including; an increased focus on portfolio diversification, a steadfast focus
on cost controls and one-time payments received from partner organizations. We
anticipate the payment will be distributed in the fourth quarter of 2018. This
payment is separate from the $6.3 million patronage dividend that was paid in
March 2018, which was based on 2017 earnings. The board will review net income
at year-end with the anticipation that we will pay normal patronage in addition
to this special patronage payment.
Our board's philosophy is that funds, which are not
required to safely operate or capitalize our cooperative, should be returned to
members. The special, one-time dividend reflects Yankee Farm Credit’s strong
financial position, combined with our understanding and appreciation of the
economic challenges faced by many of our members. Yankee's strong earnings
allow us to continue to grow sustainably, while returning a portion of those
earnings to our owner members.
"Kudos go to Yankee's management and staff for
their hard work and wise management of our members’ funds, especially during
the challenging times of Yankee's IT conversion,” said Paul Franklin,
Chairperson of the Board. “Their hard work resulted in achieving higher
returns than necessary to meet Yankee's budgetary needs. Increased revenues
combined with one time refunds allows the board to approve this distribution of
funds to Yankee's members by a mid-year special patronage."
About
Yankee
Yankee Farm Credit is a member-owned cooperative that
provides loans and financial services to farmers and other rural customers.
Yankee is an agricultural credit association (ACA) within the national Farm
Credit System. Yankee serves all of Vermont, four counties in New Hampshire
(Cheshire, Coos, Grafton and Sullivan) and two counties in New York (Clinton
and Essex).
For more information about Yankee, visit the
Association’s website at www.yankeefarmcredit.com. The complete quarterly report is available on the website.
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