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Fidelity Bancorp Reports Record Income, EPS For Year

    CHICAGO, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ --  Fidelity Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: FBCI),
the holding company for Fidelity Federal Savings Bank, today reported record
earnings for the fiscal year ended September 30, 1997.  Net income was $3.9
million, or $1.38 per fully diluted share. Compared with 1996 results, which
included a one-time, $1.6 million pre-tax charge to recapitalize the Savings
Association Insurance Fund (SAIF), net income for 1997 was up $1.8 million, or
84.2 percent from $2.1 million in 1996.
    Without the SAIF special assessment recorded in the fourth quarter of
1996, the company's net income increased $700,000, or 21.9 percent, from $3.2
million.  Earnings per fully diluted share, without the one-time charge,
increased $0.32, or 30.2 percent, from $1.06 in 1996.
    The company also reported that its board of directors declared a quarterly
dividend of $0.08 per share, payable on November 14, 1997 to shareholders of
record as of October 31, 1997.
    For the fourth quarter ended September 30, 1997, the company's reported
net income was $1.1 million and earnings per fully diluted share was $0.38,
compared with a $209,000 net loss, or ($0.07) per share for the same period in
1996.
    The increase in 1997 core earnings was primarily the result of higher
interest income.  Income from loans receivable was $28.5 million for the year
ended September 30, 1997, a 19.1 percent increase from $23.9 million reported
in 1996.  An increase in non-interest income also contributed to 1997
earnings.  Sales of annuities and insurance helped boost non-interest income
15.3 percent to $1.1 million from $957,000 in 1996.  A decrease in non-
interest expense, due to a reduction in Federal deposit insurance premiums,
also contributed to higher earnings.
    "It was a good year for Fidelity," said Raymond S. Stolarczyk, chairman
and chief executive. "When you look at our year, income from operations once
again demonstrates that our strategy is working.  Our primary business --
mortgage lending and serving retail deposit customers -- forms the core of our
record earnings."

    Loan and Deposit Growth
    Both loans and deposits were up significantly for the year.  Loans
receivable, net of allowance for loan losses, were $388.3 million, up $34.0
million at September 30, 1997, or 9.6 percent. During the year, $97.8 million
in new loans were closed, funded by loan repayments and deposit inflows.
Deposits increased $20.5 million, or 6.8 percent, to $323.4 million at
September 30, 1997.
    "Given the highly competitive environment for loans and deposits, I'm
pleased with our growth for the year," said Thomas E. Bentel, president and
chief operating officer.  "Most of the increase in our loans receivable came
from 1-4 family home purchases.  However, we also closed $16.0 million of
higher-yielding, multi-family apartment loans, a specialty of ours, and $6.8
million in equity loans.  Of the new deposit growth, 63.6 percent was in
lower-cost transaction accounts, a stable funding source.  And despite a
relatively flat yield curve and promotional pricing on certificates of
deposits early in the year, we closed the year with our net interest margin at
3.03 percent compared to 3.23 percent in 1996."

    Bennett Funding Group Leases
    Under the terms of a settlement agreement reached between the bank and the
Bennett Bankruptcy Trustee in August 1997, the bank expects to recover $1.5
million, the entire carrying amount of the Bennett leases due the bank.  The
bank received post-bankruptcy lease receipts totaling $1.1 million at
settlement.  Repayment of the balance of $408,000 in lease receivables at
September 30, 1997, is expected from future lease payments.  The settlement
also ended all outstanding litigation. According to Board policy, the
substandard classification will remain on all Bennett lease receivables.

    Asset Quality
    Primarily as a result of the settlement of the Bennett leases, the bank's
allowance for loan losses decreased to $460,000 at September 30, 1997, from
$810,000 in 1996.  Non-performing assets fell to $2.0 million from $3.2
million in 1996.  The bank's asset quality ratios showed improvement, as the
ratio of non-performing assets to total assets declined to 0.41 percent at
September 30, 1997 from 0.67 percent for the same period in 1996.

    Operating Ratios
    The company continued to make improvements in productivity in the fourth
quarter and for the year.  For the quarter ended September 30, 1997, the ratio
of operating expenses to average assets was 1.78 percent.  The ratio for the
year was 1.91 percent, compared with 2.10 percent for 1996 (without the SAIF
assessment.)  Return on equity also showed continued improvement:  For the
quarter ended September 30, 1997, ROE was 8.3 percent.  For 1997, ROE
increased to 7.8 percent from 6.0 percent in 1996 (without the SAIF
assessment).  The company's book value per share was $18.66 at September 30,
1997, compared with $17.04 in 1996, a 9.5 percent increase.
    "We believe that the year's increases in book value, earnings per share
and return on equity continue to demonstrate Fidelity's commitment to
returning value to our shareholders," Stolarczyk said.

    Annual Meeting Announced
The company also announced the date of its annual meeting of shareholders.
The meeting will be held at 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, January 28, 1998 at the
company's headquarters, 5455 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago.
    Fidelity Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for Fidelity Federal Savings
Bank, which provides retail banking services through five full-service
locations in Chicago, Franklin Park and Schaumburg.  Established in 1906 and
headquartered in northwest Chicago, the bank is primarily in the business of
attracting retail deposits from the general public and investing those funds
in mortgages and consumer loans.  The bank also provides investments that are
not FDIC insured through INVEST Financial Corporation.  Fidelity's stock is
traded on the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol FBCI.
    Fidelity Bancorp Inc.'s news releases are available through PR Newswire's
Company News On-Call fax service.  For a menu of Fidelity Bancorp's news
releases, or to receive a specific release, call (800) 758-5804, ext. 107861,
or visit http://www.prnewswire.com on the Internet.  The company's SEC filings are
available electronically on the Internet at http://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/srch-
edgar?0000912219.

    FIDELITY BANCORP and SUBSIDIARY
    Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition
    Dollars in thousands

    September 30, 1997 and 1996

    Assets                                   1997      1996
    (unaudited)

    Cash and due from banks                  $436     3,848
    Interest-bearing deposits               2,314       225
    Federal funds sold                        100       200
    Investment in dollar-denominated
     mutual funds, at fair value            3,154     3,146
    FHLB of Chicago stock                   5,700     5,795
    Mortgage-backed securities,
     at amortized cost (approximate fair
     value of $17,124 and $21,766 at
     September, 30, 1997 and 1996)         16,875    21,673
    Investment securities available
     for sale, at fair value               72,525    78,104
    Loans receivable, net of
     allowance for loan losses of
     $460 and $810
     at September 30, 1997 and 1996       388,262   354,255
    Accrued interest receivable             3,445     3,199
    Real estate in foreclosure                215        97
     Premises and equipment                 3,593     3,780
    Deposit base intangible                   107       158
    Other assets                            1,136     1,382

      TOTAL                              $497,862   475,862

    Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity

    Liabilities
    Deposits                              323,443   302,934
    Borrowed fund                         113,400   115,300
    Advance payments by borrowers
     for taxes and insurance                2,197     1,953
    Other liabilities                       6,657     6,847
       Total liabilities                  445,697   427,034

    Stockholders' Equity
    Preferred stock, $.01 par value;
     authorized 2,500,000 shares;
     none outstanding                           -         -
    Common stock, $.01 par value;
     authorized 8,000,000 shares;
     issued 3,782,350 and outstanding
     2,794,978 and 2,866,108 shares
     at September 30, 1997 and 1996,
     respectively                              38        38
    Additional paid-in capital             37,494    37,079
    Retained earnings, substantially
     restricted                            30,959    27,851
    Treasury stock, at cost
     (987,372 and 916,242 shares
     at September 30, 1997 and 1996,
     respectively)                        (13,855)  (12,619)
    Common stock acquired by Employee
     Stock Ownership Plan                  (1,662)   (2,078)
    Common stock acquired by
     Bank Recognition and
     Retention Plans                         (471)     (708)
    Unrealized loss on investment securities
     available for sale, less
     applicable taxes                        (338)     (735)
    Total stockholders' equity             52,165     48,828

        TOTALS                           $497,862    475,862

    FIDELITY BANCORP and SUBSIDIARY
    Consolidated Statements of Earnings
    Dollars in thousands (except for earnings per share)
                                    Three months                 Year ended
                                    September 30,                September 30,
                                    1997     1996               1997     1996
                                    (unaudited)                 (unaudited)
    Interest Income:
      Loans receivable            $7,308    6,648              28,468   23,907
      Mortgage-backed securities     312      393               1,387    1,703
      Interest earning deposits       25        7                  60       60
      Federal funds sold               8        2                  19       38
      Investment securities        1,388    1,510               5,813    5,772
      Investment in mutual funds      44       41                 168       74
                                   9,085    8,601              35,915   31,554

    Interest Expense:
      Deposits                     4,109    3,476              15,929   13,941
      Borrowed funds               1,400    1,579               5,541    4,188
      TOTALS                       5,509    5,055              21,470   18,129

    Net interest income
     before provision for
     loan losses                   3,576    3,546              14,445   13,425
    Provision for loan losses         10      320                  64      410
    Net interest income after
     provision for
     loan losses                   3,566    3,226              14,381   13,015

    Non-Interest Income:
    Fees and commissions              54       96                 341      379
    Insurance and
     annuity commissions             218      118                 700      519
    Other                             17       20                  62       59
    TOTAL                            289      234               1,103      957

    Non-Interest Expense:
    General and administrative expenses:
    Salaries and employee
     benefits                      1,350    1,244               5,366    4,878
    Office occupancy
     and equipment                   300      311               1,203    1,208
    Data Processing                  125      113                 482      449
    Advertising and promotions        47       88                 515      421
    Federal deposit insurance
     premiums                         58    1,795                 325    2,294
    Other                            312      362               1,346    1,284
    Total general and
    administrative expenses        2,192    3,913               9,237   10,534

    Amortization of intangible        12       13                  51       61
                                   2,204    3,926               9,288   10,595

    Income (loss) before
     income taxes                  1,651     (466)              6,196    3,377
    Income tax expense (benefit)     569     (257)              2,251    1,235

    Net income (loss)             $1,082     (209)              3,945    2,142
    Earnings per
     share - primary               $0.38   $(0.07)              $1.40    $0.72
    Earnings per
     share - fully diluted         $0.38   $(0.07)              $1.38    $0.72

    FIDELITY BANCORP and SUBSIDIARY
    Selected Financial Highlights
    Dollars in thousands (except for book value and earnings per share)

                                             September 30,
                                       1997             1996
                                   (unaudited)
    Selected Financial Highlights:

    Total assets                     $497,862          475,862
    Interest-earning assets           488,930          463,398
    Loans receivable, net (1)         388,262          354,255
     Deposits                         323,443          302,934
    Borrowed funds                    113,400          115,300
    Non-performing assets (2)           2,023            3,183
    Non-performing loans (2)            1,808            3,086
    Allowance for loan losses             460              810  (3)
    Stockholders' equity               52,165           48,828
    Book value per share                18.66            17.04
    Shares outstanding -
     actual number                  2,794,978        2,866,108

    Asset Quality Ratios:

    Non-performing loans to
     loans receivable, net (2)           0.47%            0.87%
    Non-performing loans to
     total assets (2)                    0.36%            0.65%
    Non-performing assets
     to total assets (2)                 0.41%            0.67%
    Allowance for loan losses to
     total non-performing loans (2)      25.4%            26.3%
    Allowance for loan losses
     to loans receivable, net (3)        0.12%            0.23%  (3)

                        Three Months Ended
                          September 30,            Year Ended September 30,
                         1997     1996            1997             1996
                          (unaudited)          (unaudited)
                         (annualized)                               Adjusted
                                                                      (4)
                                           ACTUAL     ACTUAL        w/o SAIF
    Selected Operating Activities:

    Return on average  assets     0.87%  (0.18)%      0.81%   0.50%   0.74%
    Return on
     average equity                8.3%   (1.7)%       7.8%    4.1%    6.0%
    Net interest rate
     spread during
     period                       2.33%    2.53%      2.45%   2.57%   2.57%
    Net interest
     margin                       2.96%    3.12%      3.03%   3.23%   3.23%
    Net interest income
    to operating
     expense                       162%      90%       156%    127%    150%
    Operating expenses to
     average assets               1.78%    3.37%      1.91%   2.48%   2.10%
    Primary earnings
     per share                   $0.38   ($0.07)     $1.40   $0.72   $1.06
    Fully diluted earnings
     per share                   $0.38   ($0.07)     $1.38   $0.72   $1.06

    (1) The loans receivable portfolio includes $0.4 million and $2.0
        million of Bennett Funding Group commercial equipment leases at
        September 30, 1997 and 1996, respectively.

    (2) The non-performing loans include Bennett Funding Group commercial
        equipment leases.

    (3) Allowance for loan losses at September 30, 1996 includes a specific
        reserve of $406,400 for Bennett Funding Group commercial equipment
        leases.

    (4) The adjusted annual ratios reflect the Company's results excludes the
        SAIF special assessment explained earlier in this release.


SOURCE Fidelity BanCorp, Inc.




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CONTACT:
Raymond S. Stolarczyk, Chairman & CEO, or
Thomas E. Bentel, President & COO, or Jim Kinney, Sr. VP & CFO,
of Fidelity, 773-736-4414, or fax, 773-736-6471