Cullen/Frost Bankers Q4 Profit Rises

(RTTNews) - Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc. (CFR) reported net income available to common shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2017 of $98.5 million or $1.53 per share, compared to fourth quarter 2016 earnings of $81.7 million, or $1.28 per share.

Fourth quarter 2017 results were favorably impacted by a $4.0 million (or $.06 per share) net-benefit to adjust deferred taxes as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Net interest income on a taxable-equivalent basis for the fourth quarter totaled $268.6 million, an increase of 9.7 percent compared to the $245.0 million reported for the fourth quarter of 2016. This increase resulted primarily from both an increase in the average volume of earning assets and increasing interest rates.

Non-interest income for the fourth quarter of 2017 was $90.1 million, down $3.3 million from the $93.4 million reported a year earlier. Other income was down $7.7 million and was primarily impacted by a $10.3 million net gain realized from the sale of the corporation's downtown headquarters and adjacent properties in San Antonio in the fourth quarter of 2016, partially offset by a $2.0 million gain from the sale of a property in the fourth quarter of 2017. Trust and investment management fees were up $2.6 million or 9.7 percent.