Republic Bancorp Inc. of Louisville said Wednesday that fourth-quarter profits dropped 12% from a year earlier, to $5.8 million.
They were hurt by a reduction in payday loan income and a "dramatic increase in personnel expenses" resulting from staff growth in its Tax Refund Solutions division.
The rare "needs to improve" that Republic Bank and Trust Co. recently received in its Community Reinvestment Act exam in connection with refund-anticipation lending did not affect fourth-quarter earnings of the $2.6 billion-asset parent company, said president and chief executive Steve Trager in an interview.
Full-year earnings rose 8%, to a record $35.1 million, bolstered by a $301 million increase in traditional bank loans - also a record. "Our story for 2005 is one of record earnings, strong loan growth, and solid asset quality," said Mr. Trager in a press release.
