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First Hawaiian
parent’s net
jumps 21.3%
A recovery in Hawaii's
By Russ Lynch
economy and mainland
expansion fueled
the record quarter
Star-BulletinBancWest Corp., parent of First Hawaiian Bank and Bank of the West, reported record second-quarter earnings, benefiting from both its mainland and Hawaii operations.
After the stock market closed today, the company said it had a net of $54 million, up 21.3 percent from $44.5 million in the 1999 second quarter. Per-share earnings were 43 cents in the latest quarter, compared with 36 cents in the year-earlier period. The latest per-share result was slightly higher than the average estimate of 42.3 cents by seven securities analysts who follow the company.
BancWest also had record first-quarter results and the company said today that the three months through June 30 was the eighth quarter in a row in which earnings, exclusive of restructuring charges, exceeded those of a year earlier.
"Our operating earnings have been setting records since our 1998 merger with Bank of the West," said Walter A. Dods Jr., chairman and chief executive officer. "Our efficiency has steadily improved and the ratio of nonperforming assets to total loans has been steadily dropping over the last four years."
The company's strong performance comes from its expansion on the mainland through mergers, along with recovery in the Hawaii economy, Dods said in the company's earnings announcement.
At the end of June, Honolulu-based BancWest had total assets of $17.8 billion, up 9.2 percent from assets of $16.3 billion a year earlier. Deposits of $13.5 billion were up 8.9 percent from a year-earlier $12.4 billion and loans of $13.4 billion were up from a year-earlier $12.3 billion, also an increase of 8.9 percent.
BancWest said its efficiency ratio, a measure of what it costs a bank to generate income, improved in the latest quarter to 52.5 percent, meaning it cost 52.5 cents to create a dollar of income. In the year-earlier quarter, the ratio was 55.4 percent. The figures do not include restructuring charges or one-time income and charges. Net interest income was up 10.7 percent at $186.7 million in the latest quarter, compared with $168.7 million in the year-earlier period.
Total cash earnings were up 18.2 percent at $62.2 million from a year-earlier $52.6 million. Banks say cash earnings, rather than net income, better reflects the performance of their ongoing operation.
BancWest was formed by the Nov. 1, 1998 merger of First Hawaiian Inc., the Honolulu-based parent of First Hawaiian Bank, and the original BancWest, the San Francisco-based parent of Bank of the West.
In July of last year, the company expanded with the acquisition of SierraWest Bank, based in Truckee, Calif., whose 20 branches became Bank of the West branches.
The Bank of the West subsidiary now has 162 branches in Northern and Central California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Nevada. First Hawaiian Bank has 56 branches in Hawaii, plus two in Guam and one in Saipan.
