Business
Finward Bancorp Announces Earnings for the Quarter and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2021
MUNSTER, Ind., Nov. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Finward Bancorp (Nasdaq: FNWD) (the “Bancorp”), the holding company for Peoples Bank (the “Bank”), reported
About this update from Finward Bancorp
[{"type":"text","content":"MUNSTER, Ind., Nov. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Finward Bancorp (Nasdaq: FNWD) (the “Bancorp”), the holding company for Peoples Bank (the “Bank”), reported net income of $11.7 million, or $3.35 per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2021. Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2021, decreased by $999 thousand (7.9%), from the nine months ended September 30, 2020, primarily due to higher noninterest expense and lower noninterest income. For the nine months ended September 30, 2021, the return on average assets (ROA) was 0.98% and the return on average equity (ROE) was 9.96%. For the quarter ended September 30, 2021, the Bancorp’s net income totaled $3.5 million, or $1.02 per share. Net income for the quarter ended September 30, 2021, decreased by $1.1 million (24.5%), from the quarter ended September 30, 2020, primarily due to higher noninterest expense and lower noninterest income. For the third quarter of 2021, the ROA was 0.87% and the ROE was 8.90%. During the nine months ended September 30, 2021, total assets increased by $113.6 million (7.6%), with interest-earning assets increasing by $110.6 million (7.9%). On September 30, 2021, interest-earning assets totaled $1.5 billion compared to $1.4 billion at December 31, 2020. Earning assets represented 93.8% of total assets at September 30, 2021, and 93.5% of total assets at December 31, 2020. The increase in total assets and interest earning assets for the nine months was primarily the result of increased securities and interest-bearing cash balances related to strong core deposit growth. “The third quarter was another strong quarter for Finward Bancorp, with earnings steady from the prior quarter. Commercial loan demand is healthy, and mortgage lending activity was stable from the prior quarter. Nearly 85% of our employees have been vaccinated, allowing us to focus on our customers and our business strategy. Overall, economic conditions remain strong locally, and we are well positioned to take advantage of opportunities in the market,” said Benjamin Bochnowski, President & CEO. “PPP fees continue to come in to support income, and interest expense saw further reduction. Other bank services such as Wealth Management are outperforming last year’s levels. Credit is healthy, with another quarter of net recoveries and normalized provision levels.” “We are al...