OceanFirst Financial NASDAQ: OCFC shareholders approved all proposals presented at the company’s 2026 annual meeting, including the election of 13 directors, an advisory vote on executive compensation, the company’s 2026 Stock Incentive Plan and the ratification of Deloitte & Touche LLP as independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2026.
The virtual-only meeting was chaired by Christopher Maher, chairman, president and chief executive officer of OceanFirst Financial Corp. Maher said a press release issued April 27, 2026, confirmed the company’s plan to hold the meeting virtually. Broadridge Financial Solutions hosted the meeting and tabulated stockholder votes.
Peder Hagberg, inspector of election from CT Hagberg LLC, reported that 57,600,008 shares were entitled to vote as of the April 2, 2026, record date. He said at least 50,762,286 shares were present in person, by proxy or by attorney, establishing a quorum.
Shareholders Approve Board Slate and Other Proposals
Maher said no stockholder nominations or proposals had been properly filed in advance of the meeting, limiting the business to the proposals outlined in the proxy statement.
The 13 directors elected to one-year terms expiring at the 2027 annual meeting were John Barros, Anthony Coscia, Jack Farris, Robert C. Garrett, Kimberly Guadagno, Nicos Katsoulis, Joseph Lebel III, Christopher D. Maher, Joseph Murphy Jr., Steven Scopellite, Grace Torres, Patricia Turner and Dalila Wilson-Scott. Maher said all nominees were already directors of both the company and OceanFirst Bank.
Hagberg said the preliminary vote report showed each director nominee received a majority of votes cast in favor of election. He also reported that shareholders approved the advisory “say on pay” vote, approved the OceanFirst Financial Corp. 2026 Stock Incentive Plan and ratified Deloitte & Touche LLP as the company’s independent registered public accounting firm for 2026.
Maher Says 2025 Ended on an Upswing
After the formal business, Maher reviewed recent operations and developments. He characterized 2025 as a year split between a softer first half and a stronger second half. After several years of choosing not to grow organically, he said OceanFirst resumed organic growth efforts in the first half of the year, including hiring “a significant number of commercial bankers.” That hiring, he said, caused net income in the first two quarters to be “a little bit depressed.”
Maher said growth accelerated in the second half of 2025, with OceanFirst adding about $1 billion in loans and $1 billion in deposits during that period. He described the year as “very solid by any measure” and said profitability measures were improving, though he added that the company expects “meaningful progress” over the next six to eight quarters in improving absolute profitability.
Maher also highlighted the company’s credit quality, saying OceanFirst ended the year with non-performing loans of 20 basis points, or 0.2% of its loan portfolio. He said the company maintained investment-grade ratings from both Moody’s and Kroll at the bank and holding company levels. Maher also noted that OceanFirst returned to an outstanding Community Reinvestment Act rating issued in the first quarter of 2025.
Flushing Deal Seen as New York Growth Accelerator
Maher discussed the rationale for the company’s Flushing transaction, describing New York as “the deepest banking market in the United States.” He said OceanFirst entered New York organically in 2019, acquired a small privately owned bank in 2020 and has built New York into a $2 billion business. The company established its fifth New York branch in Melville, New York, in the latter half of the fourth quarter, he said.
Maher said the Flushing transaction is expected to accelerate OceanFirst’s New York expansion, primarily by adding 30 branches and improving coverage in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk County. He emphasized that “size is not an objective for the company” and said performance is the objective.
He said the transaction is intended to improve profitability measures, including return on assets and return on tangible common equity, and bring non-interest expense down to 1.73% of assets. Maher also said Warburg Pincus is expected to make a $225 million common equity investment in OceanFirst at closing, which he anticipated would occur June 1. He said the transaction has a tangible book value earnback of 3.1 years.
Commercial Banking and Technology Priorities
Maher said OceanFirst’s net interest margin began expanding again in 2025, reaching 2.9% for the full year, and net interest income rose to $360 million from $334 million, though still below the company’s 2022 peak of $377 million. He said a combination of balance sheet growth and margin expansion could allow those figures to move higher as the company grows.
Maher also said 30% of OceanFirst’s loan portfolio, before the Flushing transaction, was located in New York. He described organic growth as important to the company’s long-term outlook and said OceanFirst is now “solidly a commercial bank,” with 57% of deposits coming from commercial deposits.
On credit quality, Maher said OceanFirst’s net charge-offs run about 80% lower than its commercial bank peer group. He said the company does not believe banks are rewarded for taking excessive credit risk.
Maher also addressed questions the company receives about artificial intelligence and automation. He said OceanFirst has focused on building data infrastructure and discipline, and noted the company has a board-level information technology committee that monitors issues including cybersecurity, AI and automation. For 2026, he said the focus is on aggressively automating routine business processes, including areas such as customer support, call center operations and certain compliance functions.
No shareholder questions were submitted during the meeting, according to the operator. The meeting was adjourned after Maher thanked shareholders for their virtual participation and support.
About OceanFirst Financial NASDAQ: OCFC
OceanFirst Financial Corporation NASDAQ: OCFC is a bank holding company headquartered in Toms River, New Jersey, that provides a full range of community banking and financial services through its principal subsidiary, OceanFirst Bank. Established in the early 20th century, the company has built its business around serving the deposit, lending and wealth management needs of individuals, small businesses, municipalities and nonprofit organizations across New Jersey and portions of New York.
The company's core activities include accepting consumer and business deposits, making commercial, municipal and consumer loans, and offering residential mortgage financing.
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