Business
Preferred Bank Reports 2019 Fourth Quarter and Annual Earnings
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Preferred Bank (NASDAQ: PFBC), an independent commercial bank, today reported results for the quarter and year
About this update from Preferred Bank
[{"type":"text","content":"LOS ANGELES, Jan. 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Preferred Bank (NASDAQ: PFBC), an independent commercial bank, today reported results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2019. Preferred Bank (“the Bank”) reported net income of $19.6 million or $1.31 per diluted share for the fourth quarter of 2019. This is down slightly from last quarter’s net income of $20.0 million or $1.32 per diluted share but compares quite favorably to net income of $18.7 million or $1.22 per diluted share posted in the fourth quarter of 2018. The decrease from the prior quarter is due to net interest income which decreased mainly due to the Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) rate cuts in September and late October of 2019, which impacted the Bank’s loan yields.\n For the year ended December 31, 2019, Preferred Bank posted net income of $78.4 million or $5.16 per diluted share. This compares strongly to the $71.0 million or the $4.64 per diluted share recorded for 2018 and represents an increase in earnings per share of 11.3%. As of December 31, 2019, the Bank’s total assets stood at $4.6 billion. Highlights from the fourth quarter of 2019: Linked-quarter Deposit Growth 2.96% Linked-quarter Loan Growth 1.46% Return on Assets 1.74% Return on Beginning Equity 16.95% Efficiency Ratio 32.56% Highlights from Year: Annual Deposit Growth 9.44% Annual Loan Growth 11.75% Return on Assets 1.82% Return on Beginning Equity 18.81% Efficiency Ratio 33.26% Li Yu, Chairman and CEO, commented, “Net income for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $19.6 million or $1.31 per diluted share. Net income for all of 2019 was $78.4 million or $5.16 per diluted share. Our quarterly and annual earnings exceeded our internal goals when considering the three rate cuts imposed by the FOMC during the third and fourth quarters. Fourth quarter loan growth of $53 million, or 1.45% on a linked quarter basis likely reflects sluggish loan activities during the holiday season. For the year 2019, our total loan growth was $392 million or 11.75% increase from the end of 2018. Fourth quarter deposit growth was $114 million or 3.0%. For the year, total deposit growth was $344 million or 9.4% over year end 2018 totals. Negatively affected by the FOMC rate cuts in late September and October, our net interest margin for the quarter declined to 3.67%. For the year, the margin came in at 3.92%, a 1...