Shares of Malvern Bancorp., Paoli-based owner of Malvern Federal Savings Bank, rose Thursday on hopes of a possible sale or better results, after chief executive officer Ronald Anderson quit. Anderson resigned a month after the bank reported a $19 million fourth-quarter loss. The bank also hired merger and reorganization adviser George W. Millward of the North Jersey-based Kalafian Group "to assist management," bank chairman F. Clair Hughes Jr. said in a statement. Millward used to hold senior financial jobs at the former Meridian Bank and Millennium Bank.
Malvern Federal has eight branches in wealthy eastern Chester County. The bank has reported six straight quarters of falling revenues from loans and fees. In recent months, Anderson's administration had struggled to defend itself from New York activist investor Joseph Stilwell and others demanding a reorganization or sale of the company.
Low interest rates, tough competition and a lack of demand from small business owners who are more interested in cutting their debts than borrowing to grow have made it difficult for local banks like Malvern to make money for their owners. Malvern Federal shares have risen a modest 31% since the formerly depositor-owned company sold shares to the public during the stock market depression of early 2009, compared to a 64% gain for the Nasdaq bank stock index. The stock has also declined as other bank shares rose since last fall.