Silver State Schools Credit Union on Wednesday reported it made $4.82 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, and it had $14.98 million in net income for the year ending Dec. 31.
As of Dec. 31, 2016, SSSCU reported deposits of $646 million, total assets of $703 million and loans of $473 million. It said liquidity “remains strong” at $119 million, and the credit union’s regulatory net worth stood at $55.8 million, equal to 7.94% of total assets.
The Las Vegas-based credit union said its financial results reflect “sustained progress,” as SSSCU reported its 19th consecutive quarter of positive earnings.
In 2015, the credit union reported fourth quarter earnings of $4.19 million and net income of $14.69 million for the year ending Dec. 31, 2015. SSSCU said its year-end 2016 and 2015 earnings included a credit to the provision for loan losses of $4.8 million and $3.7 million, respectively.
Improving asset quality contributed “significantly” to SSSCU’s most recent results, management said. Net charge-offs for 2016 declined by $219,000 or 16.9% from 2015. Other real estate owned properties decreased by $715,000 or 63.1% from Dec. 31, 2015, to Dec. 31, 2016. During the same time period, delinquent loans as a percentage of total loans decreased from 0.83% to 0.77%.
As a result of improving credit quality, continued low delinquency and stability in the underlying collateral valuations in the Las Vegas market, SSSCU said it was not required to fund additional amounts into its Allowance for Loan Losses account during the fourth quarter.
Scott Arkills, CEO, said in a statement, “Our financial performance in the fourth quarter and for the year 2016 has been excellent as the credit union continues to improve its capital and credit quality. Our net income earnings were strong even apart from the benefit we recognized from the reduction of the Allowance for Loan Losses account. We are pleased with and encouraged by our positive 2016 results, and we look forward to building on our success and continuing our progress towards providing best-in-class programs and services to the educational community in 2017.
“As always, we are very grateful for the incredible loyalty and patronage of our members, as well as the dedication and support we receive from our board of directors and staff,” Arkills added.
The CU was battered during the recession and endured the painfully slow recovery in Southern Nevada. Silver State Schools had $1 billion in assets prior to the financial crisis, but plummeted to $622 million at the end of 2012. The credit union is privately insured by American Share Insurance.
In 2009, Silver State Schools lost $50.8 million, followed by a loss of $21.4 million in 2010 and $8.4 million in 2011. After a much smaller net loss of $670,000 in 2012, the CU reported $13.55 million in net income for full year 2013, including a one-time, non-operating gain of $5 million during the third quarter. It earned $13.2 million in 2014 and $14.69 million in 2015.
Silver State Schools Credit Union was founded in 1951. Today it serves more than 51,000 members of the educational community and their families in Nevada with eight branches throughout the Las Vegas Valley.
