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Bank deposit advances, which strongly resemble payday loans, have been facing extinction since coming into the crosshairs of federal banking regulators.
January 23 -
BOK Financial Corp. (BOKF) in Tulsa, Okla., fell short of Wall Street's quarterly earnings estimates due to the mortgage slowdown, margin compression and higher costs for bad loans.
October 30 -
Coming out of this refinance boom is going to be more challenging than any other cycle during the past 25 years, according to longtime industry executive Ben Cowen.
October 23
BOK Financial (BOKF) in Tulsa, Okla., reported lower quarterly earnings after mortgage banking revenue fell.
The $27 billion-asset company's earnings fell 12% from a year earlier, to $73 million. At $1.06 a share, BOK's earnings were a penny lower than the average estimate of analysts polled by Bloomberg.
BOK's net interest income fell 5% from a year earlier, to $166.2 million. While total loans increased by 4% from the end of 2012, to $12.3 billion, its interest revenue fell 6%, to $183.1 million. The net interest margin fell 21 basis points from a year earlier, to 2.74%.
A slowdown in mortgage volumes drove a 12% decrease in BOK's operating revenue from a year earlier, to $147 million.
Lower overhead costs partially offset the declines in revenue. BOK's operating expenses fell 5% from a year earlier, to $215.4 million.
BOK regained $11.4 million from its loan-loss provision, compared to a $14 million recovery a year earlier. It had a $3 million net recovery, compared to an $8 million recovery in the fourth quarter of 2012.
"Many of the factors that impacted earnings throughout 2013 persisted into the fourth quarter, including slower mortgage volumes and increased expenses to meet regulatory initiatives," BOK President and Chief Executive Steven Bradshaw said in a press release. "Loan growth accelerated nicely in the fourth quarter, led by commercial real estate and healthcare lending, and our capital strength and the credit quality of our loan portfolio remain at industry-leading levels."
While BOK remained profitable in 2013, "it was the first year since 2008 that we were unable to grow earnings," Bradshaw said. "Consistent earnings growth is the key to building long term shareholder value, and we don't make excuses. Accordingly, our newly-constituted executive leadership team is executing on a plan to accelerate revenue growth, enhance our customer experience, and control internal expense growth while meeting heightened regulatory expectations and providing a great place to work for employees. These five key objectives will set the foundation for long-term growth in earnings and shareholder value."
BOK announced last week that it plans to
