Mercantile Bank Corp. of Grand Rapids said the costs of entering Lansing and Ann Arbor slowed its fourth-quarter earnings growth, but it reported healthy growth in loans and deposits in both new markets.
Gerald R. Johnson Jr., Mercantile’s chairman and chief executive, said Wednesday in a press release that the $1.84 billion-asset company had added $30 million of loans and $10 million of core deposits in Lansing and Ann Arbor since opening branches there in July and September, respectively.
Mercantile said earnings for the three months were $4.55 million, 1.4% more than a year earlier. It was the first time since 2003’s third quarter that year-over-year earnings rose less than 20% at Mercantile. Earnings for the year rose 30.5%, to $17.9 million.
Noninterest expenses rose 34.1% for the year, to $31.1 million, driven largely by increased occupancy expenses and higher salary and benefit costs associated with the senior lenders hired in Ann Arbor and Lansing, Mr. Johnson said.
