Friday, S.Y. Bancorp Inc. (SYBT), a parent company of Stock Yards Bank & Trust Company, reported a decline in fourth-quarter earnings, hurt by impairment charges. Earnings per share missed analysts' estimate by two cents.
Louisville, Kentucky-based company's net income for the quarter decreased to $5.07 million or $0.37 per share from $6.16 million or $0.44 per share in the comparable quarter last year.
On average, four analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial expected the company to report earnings of $0.39 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
The quarterly net income included impairment and equity-method charges, recorded in non-interest expenses, an after-tax expense totaling $563 thousand or $0.04 per share on a 2004 investment in a bank located in one of the company's expansion markets.
Net interest income for the quarter stood at $14.72 million, better than $13.20 million in the year-earlier quarter, primarily driven by loan growth. Net interest margin for the fourth quarter fell to 3.92% from 3.99% in the same quarter last year.
For the quarter, total non-interest income declined to $6.32 million from $7.84 million in the prior-year quarter. David Heintzman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, noted that the recent weakness in the securities market significantly affected the non-interest income of the company.
Provision for loan losses for the quarter reduced to $0.95 million from $1.44 million in the year-ago period. Net charge-offs totaled $354 thousand in the fourth quarter of 2008, lower than $535 thousand in the year-earlier quarter.
For 2008, net income dipped to $21.68 million or $1.59 per share from $24.05 million or $1.67 per share last year. Street analysts expected the company to report earnings of $1.60 per share for the year.
Net interest income for the year increased to $56.86 million from $53.69 million in 2007. Non-interest income for the full-year dropped to $27.81 million from $30.33 million in 2007.
SYBT is currently trading at $21.94 on the Nasdaq.
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