Financial Institutions (FISI) Misses Q4 EPS by 16c

Financial Institutions (NASDAQ: FISI) reported Q4 EPS of $0.45, $0.16 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.61.

“We delivered strong loan growth in the quarter and for the year while seeking to maintain credit discipline and manage risk effectively. In the fourth quarter, commercial mortgage led the way with 5.9% growth, followed by 3.7% growth in commercial business and 3.3% growth in residential real estate loans. We believe these impressive results were made possible by the investments made in experienced leaders and producers, combined with our ability to deliver personal service with local leadership and decision-making power.

“We also made progress on our initiative to reposition the balance sheet by converting marketable securities into loans, funding approximately $34 million of fourth quarter loans with investment security maturities, sales and payment proceeds. For the full year 2018, we funded approximately $143 million of loans with proceeds from securities.

“Over the past five years, we’ve made significant investments in systems, people and platforms to support our associates, customers and communities. Our franchise is strong, and I believe we are well-positioned to build on the improved profitability achieved in 2018. I look forward to 2019 and a continued execution of our strategic plan.”

Chief Financial Officer Kevin B. Klotzbach added, “We were very pleased to see continued improvement in interest-earning asset mix and the funding of loans with proceeds from investment securities, which supported net interest margin expansion this quarter.

“Our relationship-based commercial loan and residential real estate loan portfolios continue to experience strong growth while we maintained the consumer indirect loan portfolio relatively flat. As a result, the indirect portfolio at year-end comprised 29.8% of our total loan portfolio, down from 32.0% one year ago.”

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Financial Institutions (FISI) click here.

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