ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. 8-K

What Happened

• ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. announced at its annual reorganizational meeting (filed May 20, 2026) that the Board appointed Elizabeth Magennis as President of the registrant. Ms. Magennis previously served as Executive Vice President of the registrant and President of ConnectOne Bank (the company’s wholly owned bank). She will continue as President of the Bank and remain a director of both the registrant and the Bank. Frank Sorrentino will continue as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of both the registrant and the Bank.
• The company also reported results from its 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. The record date was March 31, 2026 (50,288,494 shares outstanding). A total of 42,293,111 shares were represented at the meeting (in person or by proxy) and all fifteen director nominees were elected.

Key Details

• Director elections: All 15 nominees were elected; "For" votes per nominee ranged roughly from ~34.9M to ~35.7M, with 6,162,210 broker non-votes recorded for each director.
• Equity plan: The ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. 2026 Equity Incentive Plan was approved — 34,424,591 For, 1,648,967 Against, 57,343 Abstentions, and 6,162,210 Broker Non-Votes.
• Executive compensation (advisory "say-on-pay"): Approved on an advisory basis — 34,932,239 For, 774,603 Against, 424,059 Abstentions, and 6,162,210 Broker Non-Votes.
• Auditor ratification: Independent auditors were ratified — 41,871,092 For, 377,047 Against, 44,972 Abstentions.

Why It Matters

• Leadership and continuity: The appointment of Elizabeth Magennis as President formalizes her role at the holding company level while maintaining continuity at the bank, and Frank Sorrentino remains Chairman/CEO — indicating stable senior leadership for operations and strategy.
• Corporate governance and compensation: Shareholders approved the 2026 Equity Incentive Plan and the advisory approval of executive pay, enabling the company to grant equity-based awards under the new plan and signaling shareholder support for current compensation practices.
• Routine approvals completed: Re-election of the full board slate and ratification of auditors clear the governance slate for the coming year and reduce near-term governance uncertainty for investors.