Citizens Financial Group Inc.
CFG,
+0.25%
said Wednesday it has agreed to acquire Investors Bancorp Inc.
ISBC,
-0.76%
in a deal with an implied value of about $3.5 billion. Under the terms of the deal, Investors Bancorp shareholders will receive 0.297 of a Citizens stock and $1.46 in cash for each share owned, and will own 14% of the combined company The deal is expected to close in the first or second quarter of 2022. Citizens is expecting the deal to immediately boost per-share earnings, lifting 2023 EPS by about 6.4%. It's expected to drive about $130 million of fully phased-in annual cost savings. Citizens recently acquired 80 East Coast branches and the national online deposit business from HSBC Bank U.S.A, N.A. in a deal that has given it a presence in the New York City, and Philadelphia metropolitan and New Jersey markets, adding about one million customers. "The combined Citizens franchise will operate across some of the most attractive retail and commercial banking markets in the United States characterized by large and dense population centers, areas of high-income households and centers of robust business activity," the bank said in a statement. Investors Bancorp shares jumped 5.6% premarket and have gained 23% in the year to date, while the S&P 500
SPX,
-0.47%
has gained 17%.