Bank of Hawaii posts 7.8% earnings increase and announces 4 new branches

Bank of Hawaii Corp. reported today that its net income rose 7.8% in the fourth quarter amid solid loan and deposit growth.

The state’s second-largest bank also said it would be opening four new branches this year but did not disclose the sites.

Bankoh posted earnings of $58.1 million, or $1.45 a share, to beat analysts’ consensus estimate by 1 cent. In the year-earlier quarter, Bankoh earned $53.9 million, or $1.30 a share.

Loans rose 5.2% to $10.99 billion and deposits increased 5% to $15.78 billion.

Bankoh’s noninterest income, which includes charges and fees, jumped 13.3% to $47.7 million aided by a $3.8 million gain from an early buyout of a leveraged lease.

The bank’s net interest income, which is the difference between the interest it generates from loans and what it pays to depositors, dipped 0.1% to $123.9 million amid the low interest rate environment. Its net interest margin fell 15 basis points to 2.95% from 3.10%.

For the year, Bankoh’s net income rose 2.9% to $225.9 million, or a record $5.56 a share, from $219.6 million, or $5.23 a share in 2018.

“We laid the groundwork for the opening of four new branches in the future in 2020,” Bankoh Chairman, President and CEO Peter Ho said on an earnings conference call. “The first one’s coming (online) this quarter … and then the rest of them will kind of flow out throughout the year … . If you think of those four branches in totality, there are a number of … efficiencies/closure opportunities around the cluster of those new branches that will … create efficiencies … I’m not so sure this year, but into the following years.”

Bankoh’s stock 54 cents to $91.39 after it announced the earnings on a day in which the overall market sold off due to virus fears from China.