BUSINESS BRIEF

First Defiance records 19% profit rise in 2013

1/20/2014

DEFIANCE — First Defiance Financial Corp. on Monday reported a record profit of $22.3 million, or $2.19 a share, for 2013. That's up 19 percent from 2012, when the financial institution set its previous profit record of $18.7 million or $1.81 a share.

First Defiance, the parent company of First Federal Bank of the Midwest, reported that its annual net interest income — a key measure of a bank’s stability — was $67.6 million in 2013, down slightly from $69 million a year earlier. Its provisions for loan losses dropped to $1.8 million for the year, down from $10.9 million.

In another good sign, nonperforming loans totaled $27.8 million at the end of 2013, down from $32.6 million at the end of 2012.

For the fourth quarter, First Defiance had a profit of $5.1 million, or 50 cents per share, down slightly from $5.2 million, or 52 cents a share for the same period a year earlier.