Oneida Financial Q4 profit rises 8 percent

ONEIDA — Oneida Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: ONFC), parent company of The Oneida Savings Bank, reported that its fourth-quarter profit rose nearly 8 percent, primarily on the strength of revenue growth at its insurance and financial-services units.

Oneida Financial generated net income of just under $1.8 million in the quarter, up from $1.66 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

The banking company’s non-interest income totaled $7.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, up 7 percent from $6.6 million in the year-ago period. Growth was led by a 13.3 percent increase in commissions and fees on the sale of non-bank products at its insurance and financial-services subsidiaries, Bailey & Haskell Associates, Inc. and Benefit Consulting Group, Inc.

Net interest income edged up by $51,000 to $4.9 million in the fourth quarter compared to the year-prior period.

Oneida Financial’s net interest margin dipped to 3.36 percent in the latest quarter from 3.40 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011, as its yield on interest-earning assets slipped.

For all of 2012, Oneida Financial produced net income of $5.76 million, or 84 cents a share, up from $5.73 million, or 82 cents, in 2011.

The company finished 2012 with $681 million in total assets, up from $664 million a year earlier.

The Oneida Savings Bank, established in 1866, has 11 branch offices in Madison and Oneida counties. Oneida Financial also owns the State Bank of Chittenango.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com