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NEW ORLEANS, April 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Whitney Holding Corporation (Nasdaq: WTNY) earned $28.8 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2005, a 10% increase compared to net income of $26.2 million reported for the first quarter of 2004. Per share earnings were $.71 per basic share and $.70 per diluted share in 2005's first quarter, up 9% from per share earnings of $.65 and $.64, respectively, in the year-earlier period. The results for the first quarter of 2005 included a $1.0 million distribution ($.6 million after tax or approximately $.02 per share) received on the acquisition of the PULSE electronic payment network by Discover Financial Services.
During the first quarter of 2005, Whitney repurchased 942,122 shares of its common stock at an average cost of $44.68 per share under a program announced in October 2004. Through March 31, 2005, Whitney had repurchased 1.65 million shares, at an average cost of $44.59 per share, out of the total 1.75 million shares authorized for repurchase under this program. The program extends through October 2005.
Selected first quarter highlights follow:
* Whitney's net interest income (TE) increased $11.3 million, or 14%,
compared to the first quarter of 2004, driven by both the 6% growth in
average earning assets and a widening net interest margin. The net
interest margin (TE) was 4.78% for the first quarter of 2005, up 38
basis points from the year-earlier period, and up 15 basis points from
2004's fourth quarter. The full resolution of a long-standing
troubled credit in the first quarter of 2005 added approximately
$1.0 million to interest income for the period and 5 basis points to
the net interest margin (TE). With successful collection efforts on
problem credits, Whitney is able to recognize interest that previously
was accounted for on a cost-recovery basis as a reduction of
principal. The overall yield on earning assets increased 59 basis
points from the first quarter of 2004, and has improved 27 basis
points from the fourth quarter of 2004, reflecting rising benchmark
rates for the large variable-rate segment of Whitney's loan portfolio,
the recognition of interest on problem credits mentioned earlier, and
an increase in the percentage of loans in the earning asset mix.
Funding costs for the first quarter of 2005 were up 21 basis points
from the first quarter of 2004 and 12 basis points from 2004's fourth
quarter. Whitney continued to actively manage the rate structure on
its deposit products in response to competition and rising rates on
alternative financial products available to customers. These efforts
helped maintain a favorable mix of funding sources for the first
quarter of 2005 and limit the impact of the upward pressure on funding
rates that has been building since 2004.
* Average total loans for the quarter were up 14%, or $685 million,
compared to the first quarter of 2004, including approximately
$190 million from a bank acquisition in August 2004. Commercial,
commercial real estate and real estate construction lending generated
most of this growth, reflecting both new customer development and
demand from Whitney's established customer base throughout 2004 and
continuing in the first quarter of 2005. The rate of overall loan
growth during the first quarter of 2005, however, was tempered by
seasonal repayments and payoffs in connection with refinancing
activity, among other factors. Average investment securities
decreased 12%, or $266 million, from the first quarter of 2004 to
2005's first quarter, with proceeds supporting loan growth. Average
earning assets for the quarter were up a net 6%, or $422 million,
compared to the first quarter of 2004.
* The net growth in earning assets compared to the first quarter of 2004
was mainly funded by deposit growth. Noninterest-bearing demand
deposits were on average 12%, or $232 million, higher in the first
quarter of 2005 compared to 2004's first quarter, and total lower-cost
deposits were up 6%, or $290 million. Higher-cost time deposits
increased 13%, or $183 million, mainly from the attraction of
temporary excess funds of certain larger commercial customers to
treasury-management deposit products and the addition of competitively
bid short-term public funds and deposits from bank and branch
acquisitions in the second and third quarters of 2004. In total,
average deposits were up 8%, or $473 million, in the first quarter of
2005, including approximately $180 million related to acquisitions.
Whitney's average borrowings in the first quarter of 2005 were little
changed from the level in 2004's first quarter.
* Whitney provided $1.5 million for loan losses in the first quarter of
2005. There had been a negative provision of $2.0 million in the
first quarter of 2004. Net charge-offs totaled $1.9 million in 2005's
first quarter, or .14% of average loans on an annualized basis. The
first quarter of 2004 showed a small net recovery. There was no
significant change in Whitney's overall credit risk posture during the
first quarter of 2005. Collections and charge-offs led to a
$1.7 million net reduction in total nonperforming loans from year-end
2004. There was little change during 2005's first quarter in the
total of loans criticized through the internal credit risk
classification process or in the classification mix.
* Noninterest income increased 2%, or $.5 million, from the first
quarter of 2004. In the first quarter of 2005, PULSE EFT Association
was acquired by Discover Financial Services. As a member of the PULSE
electronic payment network, Whitney received a $1.0 million
distribution from this acquisition that was included as part of other
noninterest income for the quarter. Other noninterest income for the
first quarter of 2005 also included approximately $1.7 million in
gains on sales and other revenue from foreclosed assets, which
represented an increase of $.8 million from the total recognized in
2004's first quarter. Substantially all of this income was derived
from collateral acquired many years earlier and carried at a nominal
value. Excluding the PULSE gain and additional revenue from
foreclosed assets, noninterest income in the first quarter of 2005 was
6%, or $1.2 million, lower than in the year-earlier period. The
earnings credit allowed against service charges on certain business
deposit accounts has risen with rising short-term market rates,
contributing to a 14%, or $1.3 million, decrease in deposit service
charge income compared to the first quarter of 2004. Bank card fees,
both credit and debit cards, increased a combined 14%, or $.3 million,
compared to 2004's first quarter, reflecting both higher transaction
volumes and improvement in the effective fee rates realized. Trust
service fees increased 8%, or $.2 million, compared to the first
quarter of 2004, mainly from new business development. Fee income
generated by Whitney's secondary mortgage market operations in the
first quarter of 2005 was down $.3 million on lower home loan
production.
* Noninterest expense in the first quarter of 2005 increased 7%, or
$4.2 million, from 2004's first quarter, mainly reflecting the 9%, or
$3.1 million, increase in personnel expense. Base pay and
compensation earned under sales-based and other employee incentive
programs increased a combined 7%, or $1.8 million, including
approximately $.6 million for the staff of bank operations acquired in
2004. Compensation expense under management incentive programs was up
17%, or $.6 million, with stock-based compensation driving half of
this increase. Stock-based compensation will vary with changes in
Whitney's stock price and the level of employee participation, among
other factors. Higher costs of providing pension and retiree health
benefits accounted for $.6 million out of the total $.8 million, or
10%, increase in employee benefits in the first quarter of 2005. Net
occupancy expense in 2005's first quarter was up 8%, or $.4 million,
compared to the first quarter of 2004, mainly reflecting increased
energy costs and the incremental costs of acquired operations and
other branch expansion.
Whitney Holding Corporation, through its banking subsidiary Whitney National Bank, serves the five-state Gulf Coast region stretching from Houston, Texas; across southern Louisiana and the coastal region of Mississippi; to central and south Alabama; the panhandle of Florida; and the Tampa Bay metropolitan area of Florida.
This news release may include "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward- looking statements provide projections of results of operations or of financial condition or state other forward-looking information, such as expectations about future conditions and descriptions of future plans and strategies. Forward-looking statements often contain words such an "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "goal," "intend," "plan," "project" or other words of similar meaning.
Whitney's ability to accurately project results or predict the effects of future plans or strategies is inherently limited. Although Whitney believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, actual results and performance could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results and performance to differ from those expressed in our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to:
* Changes in economic and business conditions, including those caused by
natural disasters or by acts of war or terrorism, that directly or
indirectly affect the financial health of Whitney's customer base.
* Changes in interest rates that affect the pricing of Whitney's
financial products, the demand for its financial services and the
valuation of its financial assets and liabilities.
* Changes in laws and regulations that significantly affect the
activities of the banking industry and the industry's competitive
position relative to other financial service providers.
* Technological changes affecting the nature or delivery of financial
products or services and the cost of providing them.
* The failure to capitalize on growth opportunities and realized cost
savings in connection with business acquisitions.
* Management's inability to develop and execute plans for Whitney to
effectively respond to unexpected changes.
Whitney does not intend, and undertakes no obligation, to update or revise
any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of differences in actual
results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting such
statements.
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
First First
Quarter Quarter
(dollars in thousands, except per share data) 2005 2004
INCOME DATA
Net interest income $88,419 $77,190
Net interest income (tax-equivalent) 89,933 78,671
Provision for loan losses 1,500 (2,000)
Noninterest income 21,391 20,907
Net securities gains (losses) in
noninterest income --- ---
Noninterest expense 66,261 62,026
Net income 28,756 26,158
AVERAGE BALANCE SHEET DATA
Loans $5,591,349 $4,906,710
Investment securities 1,979,796 2,245,626
Earning assets 7,597,501 7,175,034
Total assets 8,225,375 7,722,135
Deposits 6,593,001 6,119,857
Shareholders' equity 887,059 855,476
PER SHARE DATA
Earnings per share
Basic $.71 $.65
Diluted .70 .64
Cash dividends per share $.35 $.33
Book value per share, end of period $21.41 $21.48
Trading data
High sales price $46.63 $44.00
Low sales price 42.66 39.72
End-of-period closing price 44.51 41.74
Trading volume 6,275,063 3,488,599
RATIOS
Return on average assets 1.42% 1.36%
Return on average shareholders' equity 13.15 12.30
Net interest margin 4.78 4.40
Dividend payout ratio 49.43 51.20
Average loans as a percentage of average
deposits 84.81 80.18
Efficiency ratio 59.52 62.29
Allowance for loan losses as a percentage of
loans, at end of period .96 1.16
Nonperforming assets as a percentage of
loans plus foreclosed assets and surplus
property, at end of period .43 .56
Average shareholders' equity as a percentage
of average total assets 10.78 11.08
Leverage ratio, at end of period 9.27 9.96
Tax-equivalent (TE) amounts are calculated using a federal income tax
rate of 35%.
The efficiency ratio is noninterest expense to total net interest (TE)
and noninterest income (excluding securities gains and losses).
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
DAILY AVERAGE CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
First First
Quarter Quarter
(dollars in thousands) 2005 2004
ASSETS
EARNING ASSETS
Loans $5,591,349 $4,906,710
Investment securities
Securities available for sale 1,752,127 2,044,168
Securities held to maturity 227,669 201,458
Total investment securities 1,979,796 2,245,626
Federal funds sold and short-term
investments 16,526 12,195
Loans held for sale 9,830 10,503
Total earning assets 7,597,501 7,175,034
NONEARNING ASSETS
Goodwill and other intangible assets 139,173 91,969
Accrued interest receivable 32,049 29,867
Other assets 511,606 484,872
Allowance for loan losses (54,954) (59,607)
Total assets $8,225,375 $7,722,135
LIABILITIES
INTEREST-BEARING LIABILITIES
Interest-bearing deposits
NOW account deposits $890,727 $791,812
Money market investment deposits 1,237,536 1,409,981
Savings deposits 734,874 602,763
Other time deposits 687,019 738,464
Time deposits $100,000 and over 932,905 698,795
Total interest-bearing deposits 4,483,061 4,241,815
Short-term and other borrowings 675,917 692,076
Total interest-bearing liabilities 5,158,978 4,933,891
NONINTEREST-BEARING LIABILITIES
Noninterest-bearing deposits 2,109,940 1,878,042
Accrued interest payable 6,117 4,903
Other liabilities 63,281 49,823
Total liabilities 7,338,316 6,866,659
SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY 887,059 855,476
Total liabilities and shareholders'
equity $8,225,375 $7,722,135
EARNING ASSETS LESS INTEREST-BEARING
LIABILITIES $2,438,523 $2,241,143
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
March 31 December 31 March 31
(dollars in thousands) 2005 2004 2004
ASSETS
Cash and due from financial
institutions $244,610 $213,751 $235,054
Federal funds sold and short-term
investments 7,989 22,424 100,707
Loans held for sale 14,842 8,796 16,303
Investment securities
Securities available for sale 1,767,017 1,763,774 2,017,866
Securities held to maturity 228,524 227,470 214,808
Total investment securities 1,995,541 1,991,244 2,232,674
Loans 5,642,031 5,626,276 4,984,165
Allowance for loan losses (53,920) (54,345) (57,603)
Net loans 5,588,111 5,571,931 4,926,562
Bank premises and equipment 156,186 156,602 147,483
Goodwill 115,771 115,771 69,164
Other intangible assets 22,612 24,240 22,186
Accrued interest receivable 30,762 28,985 27,856
Other assets 99,525 88,880 77,908
Total assets $8,275,949 $8,222,624 $7,855,897
LIABILITIES
Noninterest-bearing demand
deposits $2,165,751 $2,111,703 $1,937,379
Interest-bearing deposits 4,555,335 4,500,904 4,361,011
Total deposits 6,721,086 6,612,607 6,298,390
Short-term and other borrowings 561,930 634,259 606,006
Accrued interest payable 5,708 5,032 4,313
Other liabilities 117,850 65,961 75,397
Total liabilities 7,406,574 7,317,859 6,984,106
SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
Common stock, no par value 2,800 2,800 2,800
Capital surplus 256,582 250,793 190,348
Retained earnings 712,518 697,977 668,960
Accumulated other comprehensive
income (18,834) (2,963) 20,429
Treasury stock at cost (72,079) (31,475) ---
Unearned restricted stock
compensation (11,612) (12,367) (10,746)
Total shareholders' equity 869,375 904,765 871,791
Total liabilities and
shareholders' equity $8,275,949 $8,222,624 $7,855,897
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
First First
Quarter Quarter
(dollars in thousands, except per share data) 2005 2004
INTEREST INCOME
Interest and fees on loans $81,741 $63,011
Interest and dividends on investments 20,349 23,499
Interest on federal funds sold and
short-term investments 99 30
Total interest income 102,189 86,540
INTEREST EXPENSE
Interest on deposits 10,708 7,970
Interest on short-term and other borrowings 3,062 1,380
Total interest expense 13,770 9,350
NET INTEREST INCOME 88,419 77,190
PROVISION FOR LOAN LOSSES 1,500 (2,000)
NET INTEREST INCOME AFTER PROVISION
FOR LOAN LOSSES 86,919 79,190
NONINTEREST INCOME
Service charges on deposit accounts 8,040 9,316
Bank card fees 2,660 2,336
Trust service fees 2,356 2,189
Secondary mortgage market operations 956 1,286
Other noninterest income 7,379 5,780
Securities transactions --- ---
Total noninterest income 21,391 20,907
NONINTEREST EXPENSE
Employee compensation 30,921 28,552
Employee benefits 8,290 7,513
Total personnel 39,211 36,065
Net occupancy 5,187 4,784
Equipment and data processing 4,274 4,378
Telecommunication and postage 2,062 2,229
Corporate value and franchise taxes 1,954 1,863
Legal and other professional services 1,551 1,011
Amortization of intangibles 1,629 1,289
Other noninterest expense 10,393 10,407
Total noninterest expense 66,261 62,026
INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES 42,049 38,071
INCOME TAX EXPENSE 13,293 11,913
NET INCOME $28,756 $26,158
EARNINGS PER SHARE
Basic $.71 $.65
Diluted .70 .64
WEIGHTED-AVERAGE SHARES OUTSTANDING
Basic 40,378,578 40,191,444
Diluted 41,064,134 40,861,274
CASH DIVIDENDS PER SHARE $.35 $.33
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
SUMMARY OF INTEREST RATES (TAX-EQUIVALENT)*
First Fourth First
Quarter Quarter Quarter
2005 2004 2004
EARNING ASSETS
Loans** 5.93% 5.55% 5.17%
Investment securities 4.39 4.44 4.42
Federal funds sold and short-term
investments 2.43 1.93 .99
Total interest-earning assets 5.52% 5.25% 4.93%
INTEREST-BEARING LIABILITIES
Interest-bearing deposits
NOW account deposits .44% .39% .34%
Money market investment deposits .73 .65 .65
Savings deposits .46 .39 .29
Other time deposits 1.39 1.29 1.34
Time deposits $100,000 and over 1.89 1.62 1.22
Total interest-bearing deposits .97 .85 .76
Short-term and other borrowings 1.84 1.42 .80
Total interest-bearing liabilities 1.08% .92% .76%
NET INTEREST SPREAD (tax-equivalent)
Yield on earning assets less cost of
interest-bearing liabilities 4.44% 4.33% 4.17%
NET INTEREST MARGIN (tax-equivalent)
Net interest income (tax-equivalent) as a
percentage of average earning assets 4.78% 4.63% 4.40%
COST OF FUNDS
Interest expense as a percentage of average
interest-bearing liabilities plus
interest-free funds .74% .62% .53%
* Based on a 35% tax rate.
** Net of unearned income, before deducting the allowance for loan
losses and including loans held for sale and loans accounted for on a
nonaccrual basis.
WHITNEY HOLDING CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
LOAN QUALITY
First First
Quarter Quarter
(dollars in thousands) 2005 2004
ALLOWANCE FOR LOAN LOSSES
Allowance for loan losses at
beginning of period $54,345 $59,475
Provision for loan losses 1,500 (2,000)
Loans charged off (3,676) (1,396)
Recoveries on loans previously
charged off 1,751 1,524
Net loans (charged off) recovered (1,925) 128
Allowance for loan losses at end
of period $53,920 $57,603
Annualized net charge-offs (recoveries)
as a percentage of average loans .14% (.01)%
Annualized gross charge-offs as a
percentage of average loans .26% .11%
Recoveries as a percentage of gross
charge-offs 47.63% 109.17%
Allowance for loan losses as a
percentage of loans, at end of period .96% 1.16%
March 31 December 31 March 31
2005 2004 2004
NONPERFORMING ASSETS
Loans accounted for on a nonaccrual
basis $21,912 $23,597 $25,095
Restructured loans 36 49 98
Total nonperforming loans 21,948 23,646 25,193
Foreclosed assets and surplus property 2,547 2,454 2,812
Total nonperforming assets $24,495 $26,100 $28,005
Nonperforming assets as a percentage of
loans plus foreclosed assets and
surplus property, at end of period .43% .46% .56%
Allowance for loan losses as a
percentage of nonaccruing loans,
at end of period 246.08% 230.30% 229.54%
Allowance for loan losses as a
percentage of nonperforming loans,
at end of period 245.67% 229.83% 228.65%
Loans 90 days past due still accruing $1,599 $3,533 $3,653
Loans 90 days past due still accruing
as a percentage of loans,
at end of period .03% .06% .07%
SOURCE Whitney Holding Corporation
CONTACT: Thomas L. Callicutt, Jr. of Whitney Holding Corporation,
1-504-552-4591