Zions Bancorp. glad to be back in black

For the fourth quarter, net earnings were $44.4 million, or 24 cents per share, compared with a loss of $110.3 million, or 62 cents a share in the fourth quarter of 2010.

Adjusted earnings for the quarter were $53.5 million, or 30 cents a share. Analysts surveyed by Yahoo Finance expected earnings of 33 cents per share.

The provision for loan losses was a credit of
$1.5 million, compared with a provision of $173.2 million last year.

“We are again pleased with the significant improvement in credit quality this quarter, which we expect to continue and to result in lower net charge-offs in 2012,” Zions Bancorp Chairman and CEO Harris H. Simmons said.

Net interest income for the quarter rose to $461.9 million from $406.9 million last year. Net interest margin — a key profitability measure for banks — for the quarter rose to 3.86 percent from 3.49 percent last year.

Total noninterest income for the fourth quarter dropped to $98.3 million from $113.2 million for the same period last year.

“Revenue growth was a challenge for us, as it was for the whole industry in 2011,” Simmons said. “However, we see signs of stabilizing loan pricing, which with continued loan growth and improving credit quality should lead to improved results in 2012.”

Revenues totaled $560.2 million for the fourth quarter, coming in below analyst expectations of $581.1 million.

Average loan and leases, excluding Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.-supported loans, increased to $36.5 billion from $35.9 billion last year. Average total deposits for the fourth quarter increased to $42.9 billion from $40.9 billion in the same period last year.

Zions Bancorp wrote off $94.8 million of loans as uncollectible in the fourth quarter, less than half the $256.8 million charged off in the same period last year. Nonperforming loans, or loans that are past due and considered in danger of default, dropped 42 percent, to $1.06 billion, from $1.83 billion in the 2010 fourth quarter.

Shares of Zions Bancorp lost 30 cents, or 1.59 percent, to close Monday at $18.58 on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. In after-hours trading, Zions shares lost 74 cents, or 3.99 percent, to $17.81.

Based in Salt Lake City, Zions Bancorp is a financial holding company that owns and operates eight commercial banks in the United States, including Nevada State Bank. Nevada State Bank has
$4.1 billion in assets and 53 branches statewide.

Nevada State Bank was expected to release earnings this week.

In a recent letter to customers, Dallas Haun, president and CEO of Nevada State Bank, said he had “reason to be optimistic about the prospect for economic stability and potential growth in Nevada.”

He cited better than expected wage increase, hotel occupancy rates and consumer spending as the reason for his upbeat forecast. However, Haun stressed that “significant problems remain to be resolved over the days ahead … but the recent improvements in our economy give us a basis on which to build.”

Contact reporter Chris Sieroty at
csieroty@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893.