First Hawaiian Bank profits surge as bad-credit caution wanes

One of Hawaii’s biggest banks more than quadrupled its profit in the second quarter as the local economy continued rebounding from damage last year.

First Hawaiian Bank announced Friday that it earned $86.7 million during the three months ended June 30, up from $20 million in the same period last year.

The bank’s second-­quarter profit also topped what it earned in the same quarter in 2019, which was $72.4 million.

First Hawaiian achieved a big chunk of its latest profit by removing $35 million from a pool of cash set aside to cover potential losses on loans.

The bank also earned more from interest on loans as well as from fees, and used its improved finances to repurchase 800,000 shares of its stock for $22.4 million in the April-June period.

“We are pleased with our financial performance during the second quarter, which was driven by the strong return of tourism and pickup in the local economy,” Bob Harrison, First Hawaiian’s chairman, president and CEO, said in a statement.

The second quarter was the first time since last year that the bank reduced its reserves to cover potential loan losses.

First Hawaiian added about $122 million to these reserves last year as the state’s economy was ravished by impacts of COVID- 19. In the first quarter of this year, the bank did not add any additional cash to the reserve pool but also didn’t reverse any of last year’s contributions.

Banks are required to set aside loans that might become unpayable on their balance sheet to show whether they have enough money to meet depositors’ and regulators’ needs.

Total loan volume for First Hawaiian slipped about 5% to $13.1 billion in the second quarter from $13.8 billion in the same quarter in 2020.

Deposits rose about 8% to $20.8 billion from $19.4 billion in the same period.

Total assets for First Hawaiian rose about 5% to $24.2 billion from $23 billion.

The bank’s net interest income, which is the difference between what it generates from loans and pays out in deposits, rose about 3% to $131.5 million in the second quarter from $127.8 million a year earlier.

Noninterest income, which includes charges and fees, rose 8% to $49.4 million from $45.7 million in the same period.

First Hawaiian is maintaining its quarterly stock dividend at 26 cents a share, which will be payable Sept. 3 to stockholders of record at the close of business Aug. 23.

Shares of First Hawaiian stock closed Friday at $27.79 after the earnings announcement, up from $27.16 Thursday.

The average cost of shares repurchased by First Hawaiian in the second quarter was $27.99. The bank, as of June 30, was authorized by its board to spend up to $43.1 million more on repurchasing company stock.