Enlarge Image

File photo

First Mariner Bank's residential mortgage lending helped lead to a profit in the fourth quarter.

Gary Haber

Staff Reporter- Baltimore Business Journal

Email | Twitter

First Mariner Bancorp posted a profit in the fourth quarter on the strength of its residential mortgage business.

The parent company of First Mariner Bank posted net income of $1.6 million for the three months ending Dec. 31, reversing a loss of $4 million in fourth-quarter 2011. It marked the fourth consecutive quarterly profit for the Canton-based bank.

On a per-share basis, First Mariner earned less than 1 penny but that was an improvement from the 21 cents a share it lost in the year-ago quarter.

“Our overall financial results were substantially improved and reflect the year’s robust mortgage banking activities, lower charges relating to problem assets as well as our operational efficiency initiatives,” Mark A. Keidel , First Mariner’s CEO, said in a statement. “Importantly, we also increased our level of non-CD deposits.”

First Mariner originated $2.5 billion in residential mortgage loans in 2012, a record, generating $50.5 million in net non-interest income for the year. Net non-interest income for the fourth quarter rose to $9 million, up from $7.6 million in fourth quarter 2011, the company said.

First Mariner’s assets rose 17 percent for the year to $1.38 billion as of Dec. 31. Deposits increased 17 percent to $1.19 billion at year end.

First Mariner (OTC: FMAR) also said it plans to close three branches this year as more of its customers do their banking online and on smartphones. First Mariner has 23 branches.

First Mariner said that while its capital ratios have improved, they remain below the levels required by regulators. The bank continues “to work diligently to increase capital to levels required in our regulatory agreements in the future,” the company said.

Gary Haber covers Banking, Finance, Insurance, Law