Chemung Financial Q2 profit rises almost 9 percent

ELMIRA — Chemung Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: CHMG), the parent company of Chemung Canal Trust Company, reported that its second-quarter net income rose nearly 9 percent to $2.66 million from $2.44 million in the year-ago period. The gain was led by growth in the Elmira–based banking company’s non-interest income.

Earnings per share rose to 57 cents in the latest quarter from 53 cents in the second quarter of 2012.

Chemung Financial’s net interest margin for the second quarter of 2013 was 3.87 percent, compared with 4.07 percent in the first quarter and 3.98 percent in the second quarter of the prior year.

The banking company’s net interest income slipped 0.5 percent to $11.3 million in this year’s second quarter from $11.4 million for the same period in the prior year.

But Chemung Financial’s non-interest income in the latest quarter jumped to $4.5 million from $4.1 million in the second quarter of 2012. The rise was led by increases in wealth-management fee income, service charges on deposit accounts, and net gain on sales of loans held for sale, the company said.    

“We are pleased that our financial performance has remained strong in the face of expected margin compression. Asset quality and capital levels also remain strong,” Ronald M. Bentley, president and CEO of Chemung Financial, said in a news release.

Chemung Financial is a $1.3 billion financial-services holding company that operates 28 retail offices through its principal subsidiary, Chemung Canal Trust. Established in 1833, Chemung Canal Trust says it is the oldest locally owned and managed community bank in New York state. Chemung Financial is also the parent of CFS Group, Inc., a financial-services subsidiary offering non-traditional services including mutual funds, annuities, brokerage services, tax preparation services, and insurance. CFS Group was founded in 2001.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com