Cathay General Bancorp Q4 Profit Rises

(RTTNews) - Cathay General Bancorp (CATY) Thursday reported fourth-quarter net income of $75.3 million or $0.98 per share, up from $70.9 million or $0.89 per share last year.

Net interest income before provision for credit losses increased 11.2% to $155.5 million from $139.8 million last year. The increase was due primarily to a decrease in interest expense from deposits and an increase in interest income from loans and securities.

Net interest margin was 3.23% for the quarter compared to 3.12% last year.

Non-interest income was $19.8 million for the quarter, an increase 73.0% from $11.5 million last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.92 per share and revenues of $166.02 million. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.