Milton Cole: 200 to 300 basis points?
JJ Fletcher: 200 to 300. Yes. I think that’s reasonable. 250 probably is a good number.
Catherine Mealor: Great.
JJ Fletcher: But I think what [indiscernible] was said earlier, as we are slower back down as rates come down, we’re still going to pick up maybe 2 points. So we’ll have more runway there.
Operator: One moment for our next question. And our next question will be coming from Matt Olney of Stephen.
Matt Olney: So come back on the margin discussion. I think, Dee Dee, you mentioned that there’d be some pressure on that margin in the first quarter. Can you help us kind of ring-fence what that compression could look like in 1Q? And I think in 1Q, there’s usually a handoff of funding as the borrowings come down from the fourth quarter and the public funds come in a little bit higher. Any more color on this handoff and what that 1Q NIM could look like?
Donna Lowery: I think the handoff from the public fund in the debt versus that will probably be really — won’t have much impact in the first quarter that [indiscernible] starts probably in March with really getting some of the inflows of that. So I don’t see it having a big impact on the first quarter. But kind of looking at it, I think what we’re kind of looking at anticipating is maybe half as much compression that we had this quarter, maybe a little less than that. But I just think with what we’re facing with the — what we’re seeing so far in January as a tale on what’s repricing really in this market competition and people still trying to get in even though our specials ended, we still got people pricing. I mean we have a 5.5% — we have a bank offering 5.5% right now for eight or nine months on a CD.
We still got some in 5.40% range. So I mean we’re still having some market competition. So I just don’t see it. I think max about half what we had at this time, but hope it were a little less.
Milton Cole: Much more compression, deposit inflows from the public money really take effect, I mean at the end of the first quarter.
Matt Olney: That’s helpful. And I guess I would have thought that restructure that you did in a few weeks ago that you announced I would have thought that, that would have further support the margin than you’re saying, but I guess it goes back to the deposit competition. It’s kind of just more than offsetting that. Is that right?
Donna Lowery: Well, Matt, we didn’t feel — we did that in the last week of the year. So we sold security by December 27 or 28 and then reinvested that this in January. So I mean, we really just got all that done. The chance or so of January on the repurchase side. So it really didn’t have any impact this quarter. This month or fourth quarter. Yes.
Matt Olney: And just to clarify, that restructure that will see more impact in the first quarter, that is embedded in that margin commentary you just provided, I assume, for 1Q. Is that right?
Donna Lowery: Yes, because that’s really — I mean, that’s 2 basis points a quarter anticipated from that 8 for the year. So as really that is like 2 basis points.
Matt Olney: Understood. And then as far as that deposit special that you mentioned, I think you said you ended that. I think that was at the end of the year. So no real impact in January. Is that right?
Donna Lowery: That’s right. In the end, what we still had some people trying to come in and get it, obviously, with the competition I mentioned, but as some of those start coming out, that will be February, March area. And so hopefully, we’ll get some reduction for sure.
Operator: [Operator Instructions] the next question that we have is coming from Christopher Marinac of Janney Montgomery Scott.
Christopher Marinac: Hoppy, I’m sure this has not been your first deposit special over your career. So I’m kind of curious what market Intel kind of gives you and what you may be able to do with that as the rest of the year goes on, either it’s on the deposit side or even pricing earning assets too?
Milton Cole: No, it’s not. So we were — stopped the deposit outflow and I think the deposit basis [indiscernible] but we’ll be able to reprice that down as those maturities come up.
Christopher Marinac: Got you. And then on the new hires you mentioned in Atlanta and Tampa, are these replacing anybody? Or is this kind of net new additions just to enhance your growth profile?
JJ Fletcher: So in Tampa, that was replacing a former market exec who came over with beats but then left after the first year of integration. Mostly others are well, it’s a mixture. We’ve got some placements. Overall, we still got personnel gaps that we need to fill, but however you want to look at it from a budget standpoint, they’re probably replacements, but we are strategically hired in markets where we see the need where talent is presenting itself for a fallout from other banks.
Christopher Marinac: And I guess Atlanta specifically, you had always wanted to push what you inherited with Heritage Southeast and into the central and northern parts of the city. So that’s probably a bit long term.
JJ Fletcher: Yes. Most of the lenders have stayed. I think we talked about last quarter, we were at 90%. No one left in the fourth quarter and our retention agreements are up and everybody is intact. This was really — we had one or two spots but a great opportunity to hire this gentleman with a construction background, which, as you may know, is a lot of our book up there in the South Atlanta market. So yes, we’re always looking also in the Atlanta market, I will say, we’re trying to acquire or recruit a private banker for that market because we really don’t have a specialty private bank unit there in Atlanta, which is something we need.
Christopher Marinac: And then last question, just more kind of big picture on credit. As you look across your footprint, particularly in the Gulf Coast areas, is there are any kind of areas softer than there would have been six, nine months ago? I’m just kind of curious on how the temperatures are across the footprint?
George Noonan: I don’t know that we would single out or point out any particular area across the very coastal markets. Obviously, real estate, residential real estate might have seen a little bit of a slowdown in the 1-4 family category, particularly in maybe some of our tourism-related markets. So a little bit there. But generally, we’ve seen as J.J. could speak to pipeline contribution from every area of the bank across the footprint.
