NBT Bancorp Q4 net income rises nearly 37 percent

NORWICH — NBT Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: NBTB) reported that its net income rose to $17.9 million, or 41 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, from $13.1 million, or 39 cents, in the year-ago period.

The Norwich–based banking company boosted loan growth, improved its credit quality, and benefited from increased assets following a major acquisition completed last year.

For the full 2013 year, NBT earned $61.7 million, up from $54.6 million in 2012. The banking company’s 2013 results included the impact of the acquisition of Alliance Financial Corp., a $1.4 billion financial holding company headquartered in Syracuse, last March, including about $12.4 million in merger-related expenses. NBT’s teported earnings per share for the year totaled $1.46, down from $1.62 in 2012.

NBT said it generated organic loan growth of 5.3 percent in 2013, consumer loan growth of 4.8 percent, and commercial loan growth of 5.5 percent. Its net charge-offs to average loans rate was 0.44 percent for 2013, down from 0.55 percent in 2012.

NBT Bancorp had total assets of $7.7 billion as of Dec. 31. The company primarily operates through NBT Bank, N.A., a full-service community bank with two geographic divisions, and through two financial services companies. NBT has 157 branches, including 125 NBT Bank offices in upstate New York, northwestern Vermont, western Massachusetts, and southern New Hampshire.

NBT’s Pennstar Bank division operates from 32 Pennstar Bank offices in northeastern Pennsylvania. EPIC Advisors, Inc., based in Rochester, is a 401(k) plan recordkeeping firm. Mang Insurance Agency, LLC, based in Norwich, is an insurance agency.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com