Business
West Bancorporation, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Year End 2024 Financial Results and Declares Quarterly Dividend
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa, Jan. 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Bancorporation, Inc. (Nasdaq: WTBA; the “Company”), parent company of West Bank, today reported
About this update from West Bancorporation
[{"type":"text","content":"WEST DES MOINES, Iowa, Jan. 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Bancorporation, Inc. (Nasdaq: WTBA; the “Company”), parent company of West Bank, today reported 2024 net income of $24.1 million, or $1.42 per diluted common share, compared to 2023 net income of $24.1 million, or $1.44 per diluted common share. Net income for the fourth quarter 2024 was $7.1 million, or $0.42 per diluted common share, compared to third quarter 2024 net income of $6.0 million, or $0.35 per diluted common share, and fourth quarter 2023 net income of $4.5 million, or $0.27 per diluted common share. On January 22, 2025, the Company’s Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.25 per common share. The dividend is payable on February 19, 2025, to stockholders of record on February 5, 2025. David Nelson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented, “Although 2024 was a challenging year, we are very pleased with our fourth quarter results. We saw growth in core deposits and improvements in net interest income, net interest margin and efficiency ratio in the fourth quarter and believe these trends can continue during 2025. Our credit quality remains pristine and we had no loans past due greater than 30 days at year end as a result of our disciplined loan growth and credit risk management practices.” David Nelson added, “During 2024, we focused on initiatives that would generate core deposit growth through targeted relationship building activities and comprehensive customer recommendations. We also made improvements to our retail online and mobile banking platforms along with our fraud management tools. Despite a highly competitive deposit environment in 2024, we saw incredible success in growing core retail and commercial deposits which led to reductions in wholesale funding and overall cost of funds in the fourth quarter.” Fourth Quarter and Year Ended 2024 Financial Highlights Quarter EndedDecember 31, 2024 Year EndedDecember 31, 2024 Net income (in thousands)$7,097 $24,050 Return on average equity 12.24% 10.71% Return on average assets 0.68% 0.61% Efficiency ratio (a non-GAAP measure) 60.79% 63.25% Nonperforming assets to total assets 0.00% 0.00% Fourth Quarter 2024 Compared to Third Quarter 2024 Overview Loans decreased $16.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, primarily due to loan payoffs resulting from custome...