First Hope Bank reports record earnings for 2005

Hope - Lewis R. Beatty, First Hope Bank chief financial officer, has reported record 2005 earnings of $2.5 million for the bank, a 31 percent increase over income for the year ending Dec. 31, 2004. Beatty said that assets on Dec. 31, 2005, were at $324 million, 11 percent more than assets on the same date a year prior. Deposits ended the year at $298 million, also up 11 percent from a year ago. The loan portfolio grew to $230 million, a 17 percent year-over-year increase. The bank’s investment division ended the year with $116 million in investment relationships, a 40 percent increase over the prior year, Beatty reported. He also announced that the board of directors had increased the semi-annual shareholders’ dividend from $4/share to $6/share, as of Dec. 15. “All areas of the bank contributed to these record earnings,” said Norman E. Beatty, bank president. Donald D. Somma, senior executive vice president for retail operations/senior lender, discussed the record growth of the bank’s loan portfolio. “Our increase in the commercial loan portfolio is largely attributable to the fact that local business owners prefer to deal with a lender whose decisions are made locally,” said Somma. He said First Hope’s flexibility and innovation differentiate the bank in the business community. “Our mobile business banking service, for example, picks up deposits and provides other banking services for free for First Hope business customers,” he explained. “Our willingness to tailor products and services to meet our customers’ needs is really the hallmark of how First Hope conducts business.” Edward F. Walker, Jr., senior vice president for investment and trust services/senior trust officer, said his area has seen a marked increase in traditional trust business as well as investments. “Many investment customers tell us that they were tired of being just a ‘number’ at a large investment firm,” he said. First Hope Bank, established in 1911, is a full-service financial institution with locations in Andover, Blairstown, Great Meadows, Hackettstown, Hope and Sparta. For information, log on to firsthope.com, or send e-mail to info@firsthope.com.