Ontario financial company closes deal with Visalia-based bank

A deal estimated to be worth about $62 million in cash and stock was sealed Friday between CVB Financial Corp., the Ontario-based holding company of Citizens Business Bank, and Visalia-based Valley Commerce Bancorp.

The merger has been in the works since September. Under terms of the merger agreement that was revised in December, shareholders in Valley Commerce Bancorp – the parent company of Valley Business Bank – received $23.4 million in cash and 1.9 million shares of CVB stock, with a cap of $62.2 million on the combined value of the deal depending on the closing price of CVB shares as of the finalization of the merger.

CVB shares, which are traded on the Nasdaq board, closed Friday at $23.04.

Stock owners in Valley Commerce are receiving just over a half share of CVB stock, plus $7.73 in cash for each of their Valley Commerce shares.

Earlier last week, Valley Commerce’s board announced a special cash dividend of $4.82 per share for owners of its stock as of the merger’s closing date. The dividend was one of the conditions of the merger, to be paid by Valley Commerce. That payout to shareholders is in addition to the proceeds they are receiving from the CVB acquisition.

This story was originally published March 13, 2017 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Ontario financial company closes deal with Visalia-based bank."