Altura CU Reports Higher Yearly 2Q Profits

Altura Credit Union, Riverside, Calif., reported higher yearly second-quarter net income, although profits took a dip from the previous quarter.

The $1.1 billion-asset credit union said in a press release Wednesday that net income rose 26% from a year ago to $2.6 million. However, profits dropped 18% compared to the first quarter.

The CU's net worth ratio was 10.7%, a 4 basis points expansion from the first quarter and more than three percentage points above the National Credit Union Administration's standard for a credit union to be deemed well-capitalized. Loan production rose about 15% on an annualized basis.

"Our second quarter financial results continue the very positive trend Altura has been experiencing for more than 18 months," Mark Hawkins, Altura's president and chief executive, said a statement. "Loan production is good, growth in checking accounts is steady and revenue growth is solid.

A year after Altura acquired Visterra Credit Union in Moreno Valley, Calif., which boosted its assets to more than $1 billion, the costs of the deal "are winding down, although we did experience some higher than expected expenses in the second quarter," Hawkins said. "Importantly, we have been delighted with member response to the merger."

About 1,100 new members have joined the credit union each month since the start of 2016, with 3,300 joining during the first quarter. The majority of Altura's new members are from the region's Latino population, a significant number of which are millennials. "These new members are drawn to our checking products, such as Nexus Checking," Hawkins said.

The credit union serves about 117,000 members at 13 branches in Riverside County.