Bank posts record earnings in first three quarters of year

TAMPA — First Citrus Bancorporation Inc., the holding company for Tampa-based First Citrus Bank, set an earnings record over the first three quarters of 2019, with net income rising by 6% compared to the same period last year.

According to a press release, the bank’s net income for the nine months ending Sept. 30 was $2,787,000, or $1.38 per share, compared to the net income of $2,618,000, or $1.30 per share, for the nine months ending Sept. 30, 2018.

The performance is especially strong considering third-quarter earnings, according to the release, were down by 15% because of expenses related to the bank’s expansion and hiring in Pinellas County. Also in the third quarter, the bank’s book value per share rose by 11%, total assets were up by 7%, loans increased by 5% and deposits grew by 5% compared to the third quarter of 2018.

“With more balance sheet growth this quarter than the first two combined, we have good momentum to finish the year strong,” First Citrus Bank President and CEO Jack Barrett states in the release. “We’ll kick off 2020 by opening our first branch in over a decade, which is located in downtown St. Petersburg. The First Citrus brand continues to grow since being recognized as the 2019 Small Business of the Year by the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce.”

The bank has also experienced solid gross annual revenue growth, going from $12.3 million in 2016 to $15.87 million in 2017 and then $18.66 million last year. As of Sept. 30, its total assets were $417 million.

(This story was updated to reflect the correct figure for how much third-quarter earnings had decreased.)