55% one year gain in the stock in about a year

CANFIELD, Ohio and EMLENTON, Pa., March 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Farmers National Banc Corp. (“Farmers”) (NASDAQ: FMNB), the holding company for The Farmers National Bank of Canfield (“Farmers Bank”), and Emclaire Financial Corp. (“Emclaire”) (NASDAQ: EMCF), the holding company for The Farmers National Bank of Emlenton (“Emlenton Bank”), jointly announced today that they have entered into an agreement and plan of merger (the “Agreement”).

Pursuant to the Agreement, each shareholder of Emclaire may elect to receive either $40.00 per share in cash or 2.15 shares of Farmers’ common stock, subject to an overall limitation of 70% of the shares being exchanged for Farmers’ shares and 30% for cash. Based on Farmers’ closing share price of $17.02 on March 23, 2022, the transaction is valued at approximately $105 million, or $37.62 per share. The merger is expected to qualify as a tax-free reorganization for those shareholders electing to receive Farmers’ shares. The transaction is subject to receipt of Emclaire shareholder approval and customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second half of 2022.