Chemung Financial profit slips in Q3 but up year to date

ELMIRA — Chemung Financial Corp. (ticker: CHMG) reported that its third-quarter net income fell in spite of the banking company’s expansion into the Albany market last year. 

Third-quarter net income slipped 13.9 percent to $2.8 million, or 61 cents a share, from $3.3 million, or 71 cents, in the year-ago period. An $800,000 increase in noninterest expense and a $400,000 reduction in the net gain on securities transactions were the main drivers behind the decline, according to Chemung Financial.

However, Chemung Financial’s earnings improved through the first nine months of this year, thanks in part to tight management of credit quality, the banking company said.

In the first nine months of 2012, Chemung Financial’s net income rose 17.4 percent to $8.9 million, or $1.92 per share, from $7.6 million, or $1.76 a share, in the same period in 2011.

“Our efforts to tightly manage credit quality have proven to be successful with a nonperforming assets to total assets ratio of 

1.10 percent,” Chemung Financial President and CEO Ronald M. Bentley said in the earnings release. “Also, the acquisition of Capital Bank in the Albany region has been highly profitable for us and has significantly increased the value of our banking franchise.

“Our expansion into the Albany region has given us an excellent opportunity for loan and deposit growth. We believe we have seized upon this opportunity in the past year by experiencing strong growth in our Albany region lending portfolios,” Bentley continued.

Chemung Financial acquired Fort Orange Financial Corp., the holding company of Capital Bank & Trust Company, in April 2011. The $29 million deal included five branch offices in the Albany region that continue to operate under the Capital Bank name.

Headquartered in Elmira, Chemung Financial (www.chemungcanal.com) is the holding company for Chemung Canal Trust Co., which has $1.3 billion in total assets and 28 offices in eight New York counties as well as Bradford County in Pennsylvania. The branch offices include locations in Binghamton, Vestal, Johnson City, Owego (2), and Waverly.

Chemung Financial also owns CFS Group, Inc., a financial-services subsidiary offering services including mutual funds, annuities, brokerage services, tax preparation, and insurance.       

Contact DeLore at tdelore@tgbbj.com