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Bankoh posts strong loan growth but sees slowdown ahead

COURTESY BANK OF HAWAII
                                Bank of Hawaii’s Iwilei branch.

COURTESY BANK OF HAWAII

Bank of Hawaii’s Iwilei branch.

Bank of Hawaii Corp. generated strong double-digit loan growth in the fourth quarter but cautioned that it’s unlikely to continue that pace as consumers face continued headwinds due to the effect of higher interest rates.

The state’s second-largest bank, which easily beat analysts’ earnings estimates, reported before the market opened today that its loans rose 11.3% to $13.65 billion from the year-earlier quarter and were up 2.4% from the third quarter.

Bankoh expects its loan growth to slow to mid to high single digits this year, Chairman, President and CEO Peter Ho told analysts this morning on an earnings conference call.

Even with the strong loan growth, Bankoh’s net income slipped 4% during the quarter to $61.3 million, or $1.50 a share. That still beat analysts’ consensus estimate of $1.42 a share. In the year-earlier quarter, Bankoh earned $63.8 million, or $1.55 a share.

The net income was affected by $200,000 it set aside for potential loan losses in the quarter compared with $9.7 million it released from its loan-loss reserve in the year-earlier quarter that bolstered its balance sheet.

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