EX-99.1 3 a2092236zex-99_1.txt EXHIBIT 99.1 EXHIBIT 99.1 FIRST FEDERAL FINANCIAL BANCORP, INC 415 CENTER STREET IRONTON, OHIO 45638 RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 29, 2002 CONTACT: I. VINCENT RICE President (740) 532-6845 FIRST FEDERAL FINANCIAL BANCORP, INC. ANNOUNCES FOURTH QUARTER EARNINGS IRONTON, OHIO--(OTCBB:FFFB). First Federal Financial Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company"), announced record earnings today for its recently completed September 30 fiscal year. For the September 30, 2002 quarter, net income was $123,546, or $.28 per share ($.27 diluted), as compared to $82,500, or $.19 per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2001. For the year ended September 30, 2002, the Company earned $502,406, or $1.17 per share ($1.15 diluted), as compared to $267,612, or $.61 per share, for the year ended September 30, 2001. The 2002 fiscal year earnings represent an 87.7% increase over fiscal 2001. The Company paid a regular quarterly dividend of $.07 per share during each quarter of fiscal 2002 and 2001. Book value per share was $19.76 at September 30, 2002 as compared to $19.48 at September 30, 2001. COMPARISON OF FOURTH QUARTER RESULTS OF OPERATIONS Net interest income for the quarter increased $130,891, or 27.5%, from $476,590 for the quarter ended September 30, 2001, to $607,481 for the quarter ended September 30, 2002. Interest income decreased $129,084, or 10.4%, but was more than offset by a $259,975, or 33.8%, decrease in interest expense. The decrease in interest income resulted primarily from a decrease in the average volume of the loan portfolio, and to a lesser extent, from a decline in variable rates of interest on loans and mortgage-backed securities. The decrease in interest expense resulted primarily from decreased rates paid on deposits and Federal Home Loan Bank advances due to declining market rates of interest, and to a lesser extent, due to a decline in the average volume of advances. The Company provided $35,000 for loan losses during the 2002 quarter as compared to $18,000 for the 2001 quarter, such increase reflecting management's estimate of the amount required to bring the allowance for loan losses to an adequate level based on a detail evaluation of the loan portfolio. Net charge-offs of loans during the 2002 quarter totaled $20,866 as compared to $21,734 during the 2001 quarter. Non-interest income decreased $9,178, or 24.7%, from $37,165 for the 2001 quarter to $27,987 for the 2002 quarter, such decrease being primarily attributable to $5,486 in losses on sales of foreclosed real estate during the 2002 quarter as compared to $5,521 in gains during the 2001 quarter. Non-interest expense increased $40,956, or 10.9%, from $374,482 for the 2001 quarter to $415,438 for the 2002 quarter. The increase consisted primarily of increases in compensation and benefits of $39,854 and other non-interest expenses of $6,500, partially offset by declines in franchise taxes and advertising expenses of $6,340 and $5,125, respectively. The provision for income taxes increased $22,711, or 58.6%, from $38,773 for the 2001 quarter to $61,484 for the 2002 quarter. The Company's effective tax rates were 33.2% and 31.9% for the 2002 and 2001 quarters, respectively. COMPARISON OF FISCAL YEAR RESULTS OF OPERATIONS For the year ended September 30, 2002 as compared to September 30, 2001, net interest income increased $409,889, or 22.1%, from $1,853,437 to $2,263,326. Total interest income decreased $394,219, or 7.9%, but was more than offset by a $804,108, or 25.4%, decrease in interest expense. The decrease in interest income resulted primarily from decreases in the average volumes of the loan and mortgage-backed securities portfolios and from lower yields earned on these assets due to declining, variable interest rates. The decrease in interest expense resulted primarily from decreased rates paid on interest-bearing deposits and advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank due to declining market rates of interest and from decreases in the average volume of advances. The Company provided $81,000 for loan losses during the year ended September 30, 2002 as compared to $55,000 for the 2001 fiscal year, such increase reflecting management's estimate of the amount required to maintain the allowance for loan losses at an adequate level based upon a detailed evaluation of loan portfolio. Net charge-offs of loans during fiscal year 2002 totaled $35,540, as compared to $104,148 for fiscal year 2001. Non-interest income increased $8,377, or 6.6%, from $127,755 for the year ended September 30, 2001 to $136,132 for the year ended September 30, 2002. Non-interest expense increased $30,954, or 2.0%, from $1,536,594 for the year ended September 30, 2001 to $1,567,548 for the year ended September 30, 2002. The increase resulted primarily from increases in compensation and benefits of $56,355, and other non-interest expenses of $28,625, partially offset by declines in franchise taxes and professional services expenses of $23,781 and $22,618, respectively. The provision for income taxes increased $126,518, or 103.7%, from $121,986 for the year ended September 30, 2001 to $248,504 for the year ended September 30, 2002 due to the increase in pretax income. The Company's effective tax rates were 33.1% and 31.3% for the 2002 and 2001 fiscal years, respectively. At September 30, 2002, the Company had $68.9 million in total assets, $59.8 million in total liabilities, and $9.1 million in total stockholders' equity. The Bank is the Company's only subsidiary, which conducts business from its main office located in Ironton, Ohio, and one full service branch located in Proctorville, Ohio. FIRST FEDERAL FINANCIAL BANCORP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS

FIRST FEDERAL FINANCIAL BANCORP INC 8-K