PRESS
RELEASE
July 26, 2002
Contact
Jim Arneson, Chief Financial Officer
(360) 459-1100
(360) 459-0137 (fax)
First
Community Financial Group Reports 66% Increase in Second
Quarter 2002 Earnings
Lacey,
Wash., July 26 -- First Community Financial Group, Inc.
("FCFG" or "the Company"), parent company
of First Community Bank of Washington (www.fcbonline.com)
today announced earnings for the quarter ended June 30, 2002
of $1,644,000. This is an increase of $652,000, or 66% over
the quarter ended June 30, 2001. Earnings per diluted share
amounted to $0.74 for the quarter ended June 30, 2002, up 68%
from the $0.44 reported in the second quarter of 2001.
Earnings
for the six months ended June 30, 2002 increased $927,000, or
45% over the first half of 2001 to total $2,990,000. Earnings
per diluted share of $1.35 are 47% higher than the $0.92
earned in the first half of 2001.
Total
assets climbed during the first half to $371,342,000, an
increase of $6,719,000, or 2% over the December 31, 2001
balance of $364,623,000. Total loans increased $4,287,000, or
1% during the first half, finishing the period at
$292,988,000. Deposits also increased one percent, or
$2,625,000 during the first half to $316,355,000.
Net
interest income for the second quarter of 2002 increased 13%,
or $622,000 over the second quarter of 2001. This increase
reflects the continued impact from a decrease in interest
rates, which had a more pronounced effect on interest-bearing
liabilities than on interest earning assets. The Company's
small loan product also had an impact on the growth in net
interest income. Small loans contributed $1,101,000 to net
interest income in the second quarter of 2002, an increase of
$202,000 from the $899,000 contribution in the quarter ended
June 30, 2001.
Interest
income for the three months ended June 30, 2002 decreased
$669,000, or 9%, from the same period of the prior year.
Interest expense for the same period decreased $1,291,000, or
47%.
Non-interest
income for the quarter ended June 30, 2002 was $1,828,000, a
41% or $532,000 increase over the same period for 2001.
Service charges, primarily due to the implementation of a new
overdraft program in the third quarter of 2001, increased
$267,000, or 55%, over the second quarter of 2001.
Non-interest
expense for the second quarter of 2002 increased by $115,000
to $4,591,000, an increase of 3% over the quarter ended June
30, 2001. Salaries and employee benefits increased by $2,000.
Occupancy expense decreased $54,000, or 8%, while other
expense increased by $167,000, or 11% from the prior year.
The
ratio of non-performing assets to total assets increased
during 2002, from 1.78% at the beginning of the year to 2.00%
at June 30, 2002. Total non-performing assets amounted to
$7,445,000 at June 30, 2002. In keeping pace with the growth
of the loan portfolio, and allowing for continued weakness in
the economy, the allowance for credit losses increased 10%
during the first half of 2002, ending the period at
$4,480,000. Net charge-offs for the first half totaled
$593,000.
The
Company's capital position also continues to grow stronger,
increasing $1,891,000 to $40,686,000 during the first half of
2002 after payment of dividends totaling $0.20 per share, or
$440,000 year to date. The ratio of total capital to risk
weighted assets rose from 10.52% at the end of 2001 to 11.12%
at June 30, 2002.
First
Community Financial Group, Inc., through its wholly owned
subsidiary, First Community Bank of Washington, has 19 offices
in four western Washington counties and offers a full spectrum
of financial services including commercial, construction,
residential, and consumer lending, deposit products, and other
banking services. The bank provides a broad range of
investment services through its subsidiary FCB Financial
Services, Inc. Further information about the bank may be found
on the Internet at www.fcbonline.com.
Note
Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This news release may contain statements that are not
historical in nature, including the discussions of the
adequacy of the Company's capital resources and allowance for
credit losses, are forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995 ("PLSRA"). Forward-looking statements are
subject to the risks and uncertainties that may cause actual
future results to differ materially. Readers are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements,
which speak only as of the date of this news release. FCFG
does not undertake any obligation to publicly release any
revisions to forward-looking statements contained in this
release, with respect to events or circumstances after the
date of this release, or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events. Such risks and uncertainties with
respect to the Company include those related to the economic
environment, particularly in the region in which the Company
operates, competitive products and pricing, fiscal and
monetary policies of the federal government, changes in
government regulations affecting financial institutions,
including regulatory fees and capital requirements, changes in
prevailing interest rates, acquisitions and the integration of
acquired businesses, credit risk management and
asset/liability management, the financial and securities
markets, and the availability of and costs associated with
sources of liquidity.
This news release may contain statements that are not
historical in nature, including the discussions of the
adequacy of the Company's capital resources and allowance for
credit losses, are forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995 ("PLSRA"). Forward-looking statements are
subject to the risks and uncertainties that may cause actual
future results to differ materially. Readers are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements,
which speak only as of the date of this news release. FCFG
does not undertake any obligation to publicly release any
revisions to forward-looking statements contained in this
release, with respect to events or circumstances after the
date of this release, or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events. Such risks and uncertainties with
respect to the Company include those related to the economic
environment, particularly in the region in which the Company
operates, competitive products and pricing, fiscal and
monetary policies of the federal government, changes in
government regulations affecting financial institutions,
including regulatory fees and capital requirements, changes in
prevailing interest rates, acquisitions and the integration of
acquired businesses, credit risk management and
asset/liability management, the financial and securities
markets, and the availability of and costs associated with
sources of liquidity.
Condensed
Statements of Condition
Condensed
Statements of Operations
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