another great qtr
East West Bancorp Reports Another Quarter of Record EPS; Continued Gains in Net Interest Margin and Efficiency Ratio Drive 46% Increase in EPS
SAN MARINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 13, 2000--
Cash EPS Climbs 58% Year Over Year and 14% from 4th Quarter 1999
ROE Climbs to 23%, 44% Above Prior Year
Management Anticipates Another Record Year of Earnings in 2000
East West Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq:EWBC), parent company of East West
Bank, one of the nation's best performing community banks and a
leading financial institution focused on the Chinese-American and
other niche markets, today announced record financial results for the
first quarter of 2000. Contributing to another quarter of record
earnings were continued increases in the net interest margin,
efficiency ratio and strong asset growth.
Highlights for the quarter included:
-- Net interest income rose 35% while the net interest margin
climbed to 4.01% due to strong growth in loans and only a
modest rise in the cost of funds;
-- 43% increase in average loans outstanding to $1.6 billion,
including 30% organic growth, compared to the first quarter of
1999;
-- Issuance of $10.8 million of trust preferred securities to fund
future growth;
-- Closing of the American International Bank ("AIB") acquisition;
-- Average total deposits grew 28% to $1.7 billion, reflecting a
79% increase in average non-interest bearing deposits, compared
to the first quarter of 1999;
-- Efficiency ratio of 38%, with additional savings expected from
continued integration of AIB.
Net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2000 rose by 45% to a
record $8.7 million, with diluted earnings per share increasing 46%
over the prior year to $0.38. Cash earnings, which exclude the
amortization of intangible items, were $9.2 million, or $0.41, 58%
greater than in the first quarter of 1999 and 14% above the $0.36 cash
EPS reported for the fourth quarter of 1999. Return on average assets
for the first quarter was 1.50%, while return on average equity was
23.08%, compared to 1.19% and 15.98% for the prior year period,
respectively.
Dominic Ng, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer,
stated, "The record financial results for the first quarter not only
demonstrate the success of our growth strategy and operational
strength, but also serve as an indication of our ability to generate
yet another record year of performance. Through increased penetration
of our core corporate middle market, we achieved both strong organic
loan growth and further portfolio diversification. As a result of both
our internal efforts and benefits accrued through our acquisitions, we
generated increases in our core deposits that provided a more balanced
deposit mix and restrained the growth in our cost of funds. Combined,
these two successes helped East West attain our net interest margin
goal of 4.00%, even in the face of a rising interest rate environment,
while maintaining our exceptional efficiency and asset quality ratios.
In addition, we successfully completed the acquisition of American
International Bank, achieving meaningful cost reductions and
increasing our liquidity through the addition of substantial amounts
of low cost core deposits. Late in the quarter, we completed the
private issuance of nearly $11 million of trust preferred securities
to provide capital support for future expansion. In addition, we also
hired a number of new senior managers that added several new key
capabilities. In all, the achievements and actions completed during
the first quarter confirm the success of our strategy to serve as
California's financial bridge and position us well for continued
success throughout the remainder of the year." |
