FirstBank First-Quarter Earnings Up 50.6 Percent Over Prior Year

Net Income Increases to Record $11.9 Million

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 29, 2015) – FirstBank reported record net income of $11.9 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2015, an increase of 50.6 percent from net income of $7.9 million during the same period last year.

“Our record quarterly earnings reflect an improving economic climate, particularly with the continuing job growth and business expansion in the Nashville area, and also reflect the focused, strategic work by our management team and all of our associates across our markets,” said FirstBank President and CEO Chris Holmes.

“I am extremely pleased with our continuing strong revenue growth and with the continuing pace of reductions in nonperforming assets,” Holmes said. “Our overall commercial loan portfolio continues to grow and our mortgage origination has increased substantially over the past year.”

Highlights from the first-quarter financial results:

• Bank operating revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2015, excluding mortgage, was $25.2 million, up 7.14 percent from the $23.5 million reported for the same quarter last year and 1.69 percent from the $24.8 reported last quarter.
• Performing loans were $1.71 billion at quarter-end compared to $1.59 billion at year-end and $1.42 billion at the end of the same quarter last year. Performing loans grew at an annualized rate of 30.19 percent for the quarter, and 11.43 percent excluding mortgage loans held for sale.
• Total deposit costs continued to decrease in the quarter ended March 31, 2015, to 32 basis points compared to 34 basis points for the previous quarter. Total customer deposits were $2.03 billion, up from $1.93 billion at year-end and $1.88 billion for the same quarter last year. Non-interest-bearing deposits increased to $483.8 million from $438.5 million at year-end.
• Overall credit performance continued to be strong. Nonperforming assets as a percentage of total loans continued to improve, decreasing to 1.43 percent at quarter-end from 1.52 percent the previous quarter and 2.50 percent for the first quarter of 2014.
• Net interest margin (NIM) decreased 2 basis points for the quarter ended March 31, 2015, to 4.04 percent from 4.06 percent for the previous quarter, up from 3.87 percent for the same quarter last year.
• Non-interest income, excluding securities and other real estate gains/losses, was $18.0 million for the first quarter of 2015, up 98.9 percent from $9.1 million for the same period last year. The first-quarter income from mortgage loan originations increased to $13.3 million from $9.6 million in the previous quarter and $5.0 million in the first quarter of last year.
• Core operating efficiency ratio improved, decreasing to 71.04 percent for the first quarter from 75.29 percent during the same quarter last year and from 76.67 percent in the previous quarter.
• Capital position remained strong at quarter-end with a total risk-based capital ratio of 12.09 percent, which is above the well-capitalized threshold of 10 percent.

“FirstBank is in the strongest position we have ever been in, and that is good news for our customers,” Holmes said. “We are showing solid growth across our footprint, and our new branch office in Huntsville, Ala., is getting established and gaining traction. We expect North Alabama to be a good market for us, and we will continue to look for opportunities to grow in the region.”