Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation Net Income Increases 25% to $1.43 Million in the 2019 Third Quarter

Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation (the "Company”) (NYSE American: SGB), a full-service community bank holding company, today reported results of operations for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2019. Comparisons are to prior-year period unless otherwise noted.

"We continue to make excellent progress in growing our business. Loans and deposits both saw meaningful growth and when combined with our prudent expense management, we measurably increased our earnings,” commented DeWitt Drew, President and CEO. "We believe we are well positioned to continue to capitalize on future growth opportunities and are confident that our customer-focused strategy will continue to yield positive results as we add new customers and further deepen relationships.”

Third Quarter and Nine-Month Income Highlights

• Net income increased 25% to $1.43 million, or $0.56 per diluted share, from $1.14 million, or $0.45 per diluted share. Net interest income improved 9% to $5.2 million, primarily due to growth in average total loans of $32.6 million. The net interest margin held steady at 4.08%. The provision for loan losses was up $130 thousand, due to continued loan growth.
• For the nine months ended September 30, 2019, net income was up 12% to $4.0 million, or $1.56 per diluted share, due mostly to higher net interest income of 9%, or $1.3 million, and increases in noninterest income of 23%, or $704 thousand. Partially offsetting were higher provisions for loan losses of $140 thousand and increased overhead expenses of $911 thousand.

Balance Sheet Trends

• Total assets at quarter-end were $547.5 million, up 6%, or $32.2 million. Total loans grew approximately 8%, or $28.0 million, to $394.6 million, while continuing to maintain high standards of credit quality. Net charge-offs to average loans were 0.35%.
• Total deposits of $466.1 million were up $39.9 million, or more than 9%, which reflects a 15% increase in noninterest-bearing deposits and nearly 8% increase in interest bearing deposits.
• Federal Home Loan Bank Advances were down $13.7 million given the strong deposit gathering activities. The average cost of all interest bearing liabilities increased 24 basis points to 1.19%, while the average cost of interest bearing deposits increased 30 basis points to 1.10%.

Capital Management

• Book value per share grew 14% to $19.01 at September 30, 2019.
• In September 2019, the Company paid a quarterly cash dividend of $0.12 per common share. For the year-to-date period, cash dividends totaled $0.36, up 3%. Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation or its predecessor, Southwest Georgia Bank, has paid cash dividends for 91 consecutive years.

Webcast and Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call and webcast on Tuesday, October 22, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. ET. Management will review the financial and operating results for the third quarter 2019, as well as the Company’s strategy and outlook. A question and answer session will follow the formal discussion.

The conference call can be accessed by calling (201) 689-8263. Alternatively, the webcast can be monitored at www.sgb.bank.

A telephonic replay will be available from 4:00 p.m. ET on the day of the teleconference until Tuesday, October 29, 2019. To listen to the archived call, dial (412) 317-6671 and enter conference ID number 13694758, or access the webcast replay at www.sgb.bank/investor-relations, where a transcript will be posted once available.

About Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation

Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation is a state-chartered bank holding company with approximately $548 million in assets headquartered in Moultrie, Georgia. Its primary subsidiary, Southwest Georgia Bank, offers comprehensive financial services to consumer, business, and government customers. The current banking facilities include the main office located in Colquitt County and branch offices located in Baker County, Worth County, Lowndes County and Tift County. In addition to conventional banking services, the Company provides investment planning and management, trust management, and commercial and individual insurance products. Insurance products and advice are provided by Southwest Georgia Insurance Services, which is located in Colquitt County. The Company routinely posts news and other important information on its website at: www.sgb.bank.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT

This news release contains forward-looking statements, as defined by federal securities laws, including statements about the Company’s financial outlook. These statements are based on current expectations and are provided to assist in the understanding of future financial performance. Such performance involves risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated today include a change in the Company’s capital structure, new or expanded regulatory requirements, the success of the Company’s growth strategy, customer preferences, the interest rate environment and other factors described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Reports on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q under the sections entitled "Forward-Looking Statements” and "Risk Factors”. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by law.

Financial tables follow.

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