Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc(NYSE: BHLB) has completed the acquisition of Hampden Bancorp, Inc, and the merger ofHampden Bank in Springfield, MA,into Berkshire Bank, effective today.Shareholders of Hampden Bancorp as of the close of business onApril 17, 2015will receive 0.81 shares of Berkshire common stock for each share of Hampden stock. Based onBerkshire's$27.38closing stock price as ofApril 17, 2015, the value of the merger to Hampden shareholders is$22.18per Hampden share.Berkshirepays a quarterly shareholder dividend, which was increased to$0.19per share in the first quarter of 2015.
"We are pleased to welcome the customers, employees, and shareholders of Hampden to America's Most Exciting Bank," stated Berkshire President and CEO,Michael P. Daly. "This combination creates a strong platform for serving theSpringfieldarea and we are excited about the opportunities for our expanded presence in this market. We have been working closely with the Hampden team to prepare for this merger and look forward to completing the systems conversion in June."
Berkshirenow has over$7 billionin assets and 98 branches serving New England andCentral New York, including 18 offices in theSpringfieldarea. As a result of the merger,Berkshire'soutstanding common stock has increased to approximately 29.5 million shares, resulting in a market capitalization exceeding$800 million. Both the Berkshire Bank Foundation and The Hampden Bank Foundation will continue to provide charitable contributions to communities served byBerkshire.
BACKGROUND
Berkshire Hills Bancorp is the parent of Berkshire Bank, with offices in Vermont.The company has over$7 billionin assets and 98 full-service branch offices inMassachusetts,New York,Connecticut, andVermontproviding personal and business banking, insurance, and wealth management services.
SOURCE: PITTSFIELD, Mass.,April 17, 2015/PRNewswire/ --Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.http://www.berkshirebank.com