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Farmers improves quarterly earnings
By GRACE WYLER
canfield
Farmers National Banc Corp. posted improved quarterly earnings this week, as the company continues an upswing in asset quality and interest margins.
Farmers National Banc Corp., the parent company of Farmers National Bank, earned $2 million, or 15 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2010, compared with $1.65 million, or 12 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.
The company’s earnings also improved over the previous quarter, when the company posted a net income of $847,000, or 6 cents per share.
Net income for the first six months of 2010 was $2.9 million, compared with $3.3 million for the same period in 2009. The decreased earnings were due primarily to a rise in the provision for loan losses, from $2.1 million in the first two quarters of 2009 to $2.9 million in the same period this year.
Provisions for loan losses were $1.6 million in the second quarter of this year, up from $1 million in the same quarter of 2009. The allowance for loan losses was down from $2.8 million in the first quarter of 2010.
Farmers has continued to focus on improving asset quality in the loan portfolio, and there have been positive improvements in nonperforming loan trends, said John Gulas, the company’s president and chief executive.
The company reported $10 million in nonperforming loans in the second quarter of 2010, down from $10.7 million in the preceding quarter and $11.2 million in the second quarter of 2009.
The company also has worked to grow its earning assets, Gulas said, with interest margins reaching 4.02 percent in the second quarter of 2010, compared with 3.95 percent in the same quarter last year.
Net interest income was $9.2 million in the second quarter, compared with $8.2 million in the same quarter in 2009.
The company anticipates continued improvement in income generation in coming quarters, Gulas said.
“We really think we are on the right path,” he said. “If the economy truly is starting to turn, we think we are in a good position going forward.”
The Canfield-based company operates 16 banking offices in the Mahoning Valley. Farmers Trust Company, a subsidiary, has two offices in Youngstown and Howland.