PremierWest Bancorp in Medford, Ore., said Monday that its first-quarter profits rose 24% from a year earlier, to $3.3 million.
Earnings per share rose nearly 27%, to 19 cents.
The $960 million-asset company attributed the earnings boost largely to a 13.3% increase in gross loans, to $828 million, and a 26% increase in net interest income, to nearly $13 million.
Its net interest margin remained among the best in the industry, increasing 56 basis points from a year earlier, to 6.24%, though it actually fell slightly from the third quarter, because of increased funding costs.
No-interest deposits rose just 0.5% from a year earlier, while borrowings jumped 195%, to $52.3 million. That could explain why, despite the strong earnings numbers, PremierWest's stock was down 5.7% late Monday, to $16.58 a share.
The company, created five years ago through the merger of two southern Oregon banking companies, also said Monday that construction is nearly completed on branches in Ashland and Shady Grove, and that the branches are scheduled to open this month.
