Meridian Interstate Bancorp, the holding company for East Boston Savings Bank, recorded $4 million in net income for the fourth quarter last year, up 90 percent from $2.1 million during the fourth quarter of 2012. Net income for the year totaled $15.4 million, compared with $12.4 million in the previous year.
"During the past year, we opened three new branches in the lucrative Boston area markets of Belmont, Allston and Somerville, our 27th full service location, as we continue to gain traction in attracting new lending and core deposit customer relationships across all of our business lines," Chairman and CEO Richard J. Gavegnano said in a statement.
A $479 million increase in net loans, or 26.8 percent, boosted total assets up to $2.7 billion, up $403 million or 17.7 percent from $2.3 billion in the previous year. That net increase in loans was due primarily to increases of $236.8 million in commercial real estate loans, $109.2 million in multi-family loans, $35.5 million in construction loans and $99.2 million in commercial business loans.
Total deposits increased $383.2 million, or 20.5 percent, to $2.2 billion at year’s end, compared with $1.9 billion at the end of 2012, including net growth in core deposits of $335.7 million, or 27.1 percent, to $1.573 billion, or just less than 70 percent of total deposits.
Management decreased the company’s provision for loan losses after assessing the loan portfolio growth, historical charge-off trends and credit quality. For the fourth quarter, provision for loan losses totaled $1.8 million, compared with $2.8 million in 2012, and for the year, provision for loan losses totaled $6.5 million, compared with $8.6 million the previous year.
Non-performing loans increased $2 million, or 4.9 percent, to $41.5 million, or 1.81 percent of total loans outstanding, at year end 2013, from $39.6 million, or 2.19 percent of total loans outstanding, at year end 2012, primarily due to a net increase of $3.5 million in non-performing construction loans. Non-performing assets increased $744,000, or 1.8 percent, to $42.9 million, or 1.6 percent of total assets, from $42.2 million, or 1.85 percent of total assets, in 2012.
Non-performing assets at year’s end were comprised of $11.3 million of construction loans, $9 million of commercial real estate loans, $17.6 million of one- to four-family mortgage loans, $2.7 million of home equity loans, $949,000 of commercial business loans and foreclosed real estate of $1.4 million. Non-performing assets included $15.8 million of assets acquired in the January 2010 Mt. Washington Co-operative Bank merger, comprised of $15.4 million of non-performing loans and $401,000 of foreclosed real estate.
