Bar Harbor Bankshares Q1 earnings up 26%
COURTESY / BAR HARBOR BANK & TRUST
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, which recently opened an office in Bedford, N.H., reported a 26% earnings increase to start 2021.
Bar Harbor Bankshares (NYSE American: BHB) on Thursday reported a 26% increase in earnings for the first quarter of the year compared to the same quarter of 2020.
The parent company of Bar Harbor Bank & Trust reported that net income in the first quarter of 2021 was $9.5 million, or 63 cents per share, compared to $7.7 million, or 50 cents per share in Q1 of 2020.
For the same periods, core earnings were $10.2 million, or 68 cents per share, compared to $7.8 million, or 50 cents per share.
Q1 2021 highlights over Q1 2020:
• 1.03% return on assets; 1.11% core return on assets
• 8% annualized total commercial loan growth, excluding Paycheck Protection Program loans
• 12% annualized increase in core deposits
• 5% increase in pre-tax, pre-provision net revenue; 13% excluding non-core charges
• 22% increase in fee income.
The bank's president and CEO, Curtis Simard, said, “Wealth management income increased 9% due to a 23% increase in assets under management compared to the same quarter of 2020. This increase reflects the strength of our newly consolidated platform as well as improved market conditions.”
The bank also continued to generate “significant gains” from residential loan sales, he added.
Simard credited the bank’s management teams for focusing on profitability and reducing most categories of non-interest expense during the first quarter 2021.
“Also, during the first quarter, we kicked off an intensive review of our non-interest expense leveraging a strategic third-party partner,” he said. “The goal of the review is to identify normalized expense run-rates that are optimal for our current size and footprint, and establish sustainable run-rates that allow for revenue growth in the future.
"Deposit growth has also allowed us to optimize our cost of funds by reducing wholesale funding as a percentage of total debt to 15%, compared to 29% for the first quarter 2020,” he continued. “Over the past several quarters, excess liquidity was used to fund earning asset growth, specifically in commercial loans.”
The bank’s board of directors approved a stock repurchase plan, authorizing the repurchase of up to 5% of outstanding common stock, representing approximately 747,000 shares as of March 31.
“These return of capital measures are supported by expanded earnings, continuous growth in capital and ongoing profitability programs, validating our commitment to building shareholder value,” Simard said.
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