First Tennessee BankFirst Tennessee Bank boosted first quarter earnings by 42 percent to $41 million, or 17 cents per share.
As the market remained flat overall, the bank slashed costs by reducing headcount and pension obligations, while still generating across-the-board growth in loans and deposits. First Tennessee grew average loans by 6 percent, and grew average deposits by 4 percent, while reducing expenses by 8 percent.
“It’s really kind of a culmination of several years of work and progress that we’ve been making,” said BJ Losch, chief financial officer of First Horizon, holding company for First Tennessee. “As a company, we’ve been focusing on returns and profitability.”
In spite of the jump in earnings, the amount of total money coming in fell from the first quarter of 2012, when the bank brought in $374.3 million in total revenue and $172 million in net interest income. In the first quarter of 2013, First Tennessee generated just $317.8 million in total revenue, including $161 million in net interest income.
“I think a phrase that we use across the company is, it’s a marathon, not a sprint,” Losch said.