First Bancorp to purchase Century Bancorp Inc. for 3.20 times revenue

Weekly Corporate Growth Report, Oct 30, 2000

The Deal: First Bancorp has agreed to purchase Century Bancorp Inc. for $22.1 million is cash or stock. The shareholders of Century will have the option of receiving about $20 per share in cash or 1.3333 shares of First Bancorp common stock for each share of Century.

Discussion: Century Bancorp Inc. is the holding company for Home Savings, a state-chartered bank in Thomasville, North Carolina. Through its office about 20 miles south of Greensboro and Winston-Salem, the bank offers traditional deposit services such as passbook and statement savings, NOW, checking and money market accounts and certificates of deposit. These funds are mainly used to originate one- to four-family residential mortgages, in addition to multifamily, commercial real estate, construction and consumer loans. First Bancorp is the bank holding company for First Bank and First Savings Bank of Moore County, which serve 15 central North Carolina counties with more than 40 branches. The bank offers checking, savings, money market and NOW accounts; credit cards; IRAs; and investment and discount brokerage services. Its lending services include mortgage loans which account for nearly 70 percent of its loan portfolio and commercial, construction and consumer loans. First Bancorp also owns Montgomery Data Services and First Bancorp Financial Services. The bank has also re-opened an insurance subsidiary.