First Financial Corporation Reports First Quarter Results
Rhea-AI Summary
First Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:THFF) reported first-quarter 2026 results: net income $19.8M, diluted EPS $1.67, and record net interest income $56.9M. Total assets surpassed $6.13B, total loans were $4.42B, and shareholders' equity reached $655.3M. The company completed the acquisition of CedarStone Financial on March 1, 2026, adding $292M loans and $313M deposits and recording a $0.7M bargain purchase gain.
Positive
- Total assets +10.5% YoY to $6.13B as of March 31, 2026
- Total loans outstanding +14.79% YoY to $4.42B
- Shareholders' equity +14.57% YoY to $655.3M
- Book value per share +14.17% YoY to $55.10
- Tangible book value per share +18.36% YoY to $45.13
- Completed acquisition of CedarStone: $292M loans and $313M deposits; $0.7M bargain purchase gain
Negative
- Non-interest expense increased 11.2% YoY to $40.9M
- Nonperforming loans rose from $10.2M to $28.5M (nonperforming ratio 0.64%)
- Provision for credit losses increased 30.8% YoY to $2.55M
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
THFF gained 0.95% pre-news while key regional peers like CAC, SMBC, GSBC, and MPB showed gains between 0.45% and 2.19%. Scanner data does not flag a coordinated sector momentum move.
Previous Earnings Reports
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 28 | Q3 2025 earnings | Positive | +3.1% | Strong YoY rebound in net income, record net interest income, higher margin. |
| Jul 22 | Q2 2025 earnings | Positive | +1.3% | Higher net income and EPS with record net interest income and margin gains. |
| Apr 22 | Q1 2025 earnings | Positive | +5.5% | Strong earnings growth, record net interest income and improved credit quality. |
| Oct 22 | Q3 2024 earnings | Negative | +0.8% | Lower net income and EPS with sharply higher credit loss provision. |
| Jul 23 | Q2 2024 earnings | Negative | +3.1% | Earnings down year-over-year despite loan growth and higher efficiency ratio. |
Earnings releases have generally triggered positive price reactions, even when fundamentals were mixed; however, negative-leaning quarters have sometimes seen shares rise, showing occasional divergence.
Over recent earnings cycles, First Financial Corporation has reported growing profitability and expanding net interest income. Q1, Q2, and Q3 2025 results all highlighted higher net income, rising EPS, and record net interest income, with loan growth supported by acquisitions such as SimplyBank. Earlier 2024 quarters showed pressure on earnings and higher credit loss provisions. Today’s Q1 2026 report continues the theme of record net interest income, sustained loan growth, and improved book value per share, while also noting higher nonperforming loans.
Historical Comparison
Across the last five earnings releases, THFF moved an average of 2.77%, with generally positive reactions to improving profitability and loan growth.
Earnings history shows a transition from weaker 2024 results with elevated credit provisions to stronger 2025 quarters featuring higher net income, record net interest income, and loan growth, supported by acquisitions.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement details Q1 2026 results featuring net income of $19.8 million, diluted EPS of $1.67, record net interest income of $56.9 million, and a net interest margin of 4.23%. Loans surpassed $4.4 billion with the CedarStone acquisition, and book value per share rose to $55.10. Offsetting positives, nonperforming loans increased to $28.5 million and the credit loss provision rose, making ongoing asset quality and integration progress key metrics to watch.
Key Terms
bargain purchase gain financial
net interest margin financial
nonperforming loans financial
efficiency ratio financial
tier 1 leverage regulatory
risk-based capital - tier 1 regulatory
allowance for credit losses financial
other real estate owned financial
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind., April 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:THFF) today announced results for the first quarter of 2026.
- Net income was
$19.8 million compared to$18.4 million reported for the same period of 2025; - Diluted net income per common share of
$1.67 compared to$1.55 for the same period of 2025; - Return on average assets was
1.35% compared to1.34% for the three months ended March 31, 2025; - Provision for credit losses was
$2.6 million compared to provision of$2.0 million for the first quarter 2025; and - Pre-tax, pre-provision net income was
$27.3 million compared to$25.7 million for the same period in 2025.1
1 Non-GAAP financial measure that Management believes is useful for investors and management to understand pre-tax profitability before giving effect to credit loss expense and to provide additional perspective on the Corporation’s performance over time as well as comparison to the Corporation’s peers and evaluating the financial results of the Corporation – please refer to the Non GAAP reconciliations contained in this release.
Acquisition
On March 1, 2026, First Financial Corporation completed the acquisition of CedarStone Financial, Inc. As a result of the acquisition, loans acquired were
Average Total Loans
Average total loans for the first quarter of 2026 were
Total Loans Outstanding
Total loans outstanding as of March 31, 2026, were
Norman D. Lowery, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented “We are pleased with our first quarter results. In the first quarter, we surpassed
Average Total Deposits
Average total deposits for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, were
Total Deposits
Total deposits were
Shareholders’ Equity
Shareholders’ equity at March 31, 2026, was
Book Value Per Share
Book Value per share was
Tangible Common Equity to Tangible Asset Ratio
The Corporation’s tangible common equity to tangible asset ratio was
Net Interest Income
Net interest income for the first quarter of 2026 was a record
Net Interest Margin
The net interest margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, was
Nonperforming Loans
Nonperforming loans as of March 31, 2026, were
Credit Loss Provision
The provision for credit losses for the three months ended March 31, 2026, was
Net Charge-Offs
In the first quarter of 2026 net charge-offs were
Allowance for Credit Losses
The Corporation’s allowance for credit losses as of March 31, 2026, was
Non-Interest Income
Non-interest income for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025 was
Non-Interest Expense
Non-interest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2026, was
Efficiency Ratio
The Corporation’s efficiency ratio was
Income Taxes
Income tax expense for the three months ended March 31, 2026, was
About First Financial Corporation
First Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:THFF) is the holding company for First Financial Bank N.A., which is the fifth oldest national bank in the United States, operating 79 banking centers in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. Additional information is available at www.first-online.bank.
Investor Contact:
Rodger A. McHargue
Chief Financial Officer
P: 812-238-6334
E: rmchargue@first-online.com
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | March 31, | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | 2025 | ||||||||
| END OF PERIOD BALANCES | ||||||||||
| Assets | $ | 6,128,589 | $ | 5,756,126 | $ | 5,549,094 | ||||
| Deposits | $ | 4,842,386 | $ | 4,551,111 | $ | 4,640,003 | ||||
| Loans, including net deferred loan costs | $ | 4,423,921 | $ | 4,055,303 | $ | 3,854,020 | ||||
| Allowance for Credit Losses | $ | 52,338 | $ | 47,995 | $ | 46,835 | ||||
| Total Equity | $ | 655,288 | $ | 650,869 | $ | 571,945 | ||||
| Tangible Common Equity(a) | $ | 536,659 | $ | 535,262 | $ | 451,874 | ||||
| AVERAGE BALANCES | ||||||||||
| Total Assets | $ | 5,850,090 | $ | 5,654,790 | $ | 5,508,767 | ||||
| Earning Assets | $ | 5,523,970 | $ | 5,334,253 | $ | 5,194,478 | ||||
| Investments | $ | 1,263,714 | $ | 1,258,077 | $ | 1,266,300 | ||||
| Loans | $ | 4,160,366 | $ | 3,973,985 | $ | 3,841,752 | ||||
| Total Deposits | $ | 4,663,780 | $ | 4,641,267 | $ | 4,650,883 | ||||
| Interest-Bearing Deposits | $ | 3,718,070 | $ | 3,790,653 | $ | 3,837,679 | ||||
| Interest-Bearing Liabilities | $ | 480,073 | $ | 326,493 | $ | 261,174 | ||||
| Total Equity | $ | 663,896 | $ | 640,172 | $ | 564,742 | ||||
| INCOME STATEMENT DATA | ||||||||||
| Net Interest Income | $ | 56,933 | $ | 60,619 | $ | 51,975 | ||||
| Net Interest Income Fully Tax Equivalent(b) | $ | 58,397 | $ | 62,003 | $ | 53,373 | ||||
| Provision for Credit Losses | $ | 2,550 | $ | 2,350 | $ | 1,950 | ||||
| Non-interest Income | $ | 11,217 | $ | 9,931 | $ | 10,511 | ||||
| Non-interest Expense | $ | 40,879 | $ | 41,843 | $ | 36,759 | ||||
| Net Income | $ | 19,804 | $ | 21,454 | $ | 18,406 | ||||
| PER SHARE DATA | ||||||||||
| Basic and Diluted Net Income Per Common Share | $ | 1.67 | $ | 1.81 | $ | 1.55 | ||||
| Cash Dividends Declared Per Common Share | $ | 0.56 | $ | 0.56 | $ | 0.51 | ||||
| Book Value Per Common Share | $ | 55.10 | $ | 54.78 | $ | 48.26 | ||||
| Tangible Book Value Per Common Share(c) | $ | 45.13 | $ | 44.31 | $ | 38.13 | ||||
| Basic Weighted Average Common Shares Outstanding | 11,885 | 11,865 | 11,842 | |||||||
(a) Tangible common equity is a non-GAAP financial measure derived from GAAP-based amounts. We calculate tangible common equity by excluding goodwill and other intangible assets from shareholder’s equity.
(b) Net interest income fully tax equivalent is a non-GAAP financial measure derived from GAAP-based amounts. We calculate net interest income fully tax equivalent by adding back the tax equivalent factor of tax exempt income to net interest income. We calculate the tax equivalent factor of tax exempt income by dividing tax exempt income by the net of tax rate of
(c) Tangible book value per common share is a non-GAAP financial measure derived from GAAP-based amounts. We calculate the factor by dividing average tangible common equity by average shares outstanding. We calculate average tangible common equity by excluding average intangible assets from average shareholder’s equity.
| Key Ratios | Three Months Ended | ||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | March 31, | |||||
| 2026 | 2025 | 2025 | |||||
| Return on average assets | 1.35 | % | 1.52 | % | 1.34 | % | |
| Return on average common shareholder's equity | 11.93 | % | 13.41 | % | 13.04 | % | |
| Efficiency ratio | 58.72 | % | 58.17 | % | 57.54 | % | |
| Average equity to average assets | 11.35 | % | 11.32 | % | 10.25 | % | |
| Net interest margin(a) | 4.23 | % | 4.66 | % | 4.11 | % | |
| Net charge-offs to average loans and leases | 0.15 | % | 0.18 | % | 0.19 | % | |
| Credit loss reserve to loans and leases | 1.18 | % | 1.18 | % | 1.22 | % | |
| Credit loss reserve to nonperforming loans | 183.89 | % | 167.94 | % | 460.57 | % | |
| Nonperforming loans to loans and leases | 0.64 | % | 0.70 | % | 0.26 | % | |
| Tier 1 leverage | 11.03 | % | 11.25 | % | 10.63 | % | |
| Risk-based capital - Tier 1 | 12.50 | % | 13.21 | % | 12.70 | % | |
(a) Net interest margin is calculated on a tax equivalent basis.
| Asset Quality | Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | March 31, | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | 2025 | ||||||||
| Accruing loans and leases past due 30-89 days | $ | 19,882 | $ | 17,294 | $ | 17,007 | ||||
| Accruing loans and leases past due 90 days or more | $ | 938 | $ | 1,083 | $ | 1,109 | ||||
| Nonaccrual loans and leases | $ | 27,524 | $ | 27,495 | $ | 9,060 | ||||
| Other real estate owned | $ | 184 | $ | 94 | $ | 560 | ||||
| Nonperforming loans and other real estate owned | $ | 28,646 | $ | 28,672 | $ | 10,729 | ||||
| Total nonperforming assets | $ | 31,288 | $ | 31,522 | $ | 13,631 | ||||
| Gross charge-offs | $ | 2,945 | $ | 3,415 | $ | 3,241 | ||||
| Recoveries | $ | 1,418 | $ | 1,649 | $ | 1,394 | ||||
| Net charge-offs/(recoveries) | $ | 1,527 | $ | 1,766 | $ | 1,847 | ||||
| Non-GAAP Reconciliations | Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||
| ($in thousands, except EPS) | ||||||
| Income before Income Taxes | $ | 24,721 | $ | 23,777 | ||
| Provision for credit losses | 2,550 | 1,950 | ||||
| Provision for unfunded commitments | — | — | ||||
| Pre-tax, Pre-provision Income | $ | 27,271 | $ | 25,727 | ||
| CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Dollar amounts in thousands, except per share data) | ||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | |||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||
| ASSETS | ||||||||
| Cash and due from banks | $ | 96,887 | $ | 130,369 | ||||
| Federal funds sold | — | 475 | ||||||
| Securities available-for-sale | 1,170,768 | 1,149,526 | ||||||
| Loans: | ||||||||
| Commercial | 2,525,068 | 2,375,344 | ||||||
| Residential | 1,187,587 | 986,955 | ||||||
| Consumer | 703,322 | 688,135 | ||||||
| 4,415,977 | 4,050,434 | |||||||
| (Less) plus: | ||||||||
| Net deferred loan costs | 7,944 | 4,869 | ||||||
| Allowance for credit losses | (52,338 | ) | (47,995 | ) | ||||
| 4,371,583 | 4,007,308 | |||||||
| Restricted stock | 18,553 | 18,536 | ||||||
| Accrued interest receivable | 27,881 | 27,762 | ||||||
| Premises and equipment, net | 88,692 | 78,582 | ||||||
| Bank-owned life insurance | 136,453 | 131,286 | ||||||
| Goodwill | 98,229 | 98,229 | ||||||
| Other intangible assets | 20,400 | 16,234 | ||||||
| Other real estate owned | 184 | 94 | ||||||
| Other assets | 98,959 | 97,725 | ||||||
| TOTAL ASSETS | $ | 6,128,589 | $ | 5,756,126 | ||||
| LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY | ||||||||
| Deposits: | ||||||||
| Non-interest-bearing | $ | 1,139,666 | $ | 916,473 | ||||
| Interest-bearing: | ||||||||
| Certificates of deposit exceeding the FDIC insurance limits | 135,035 | 135,605 | ||||||
| Other interest-bearing deposits | 3,567,685 | 3,499,033 | ||||||
| 4,842,386 | 4,551,111 | |||||||
| Short-term borrowings | 349,781 | 292,468 | ||||||
| FHLB advances | 208,756 | 188,208 | ||||||
| Other liabilities | 72,378 | 73,470 | ||||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES | 5,473,301 | 5,105,257 | ||||||
| Shareholders’ equity | ||||||||
| Common stock, $.125 stated value per share; | ||||||||
| Authorized shares-40,000,000 | ||||||||
| Issued shares-16,206,804 in 2026 and 16,190,157 in 2025 | ||||||||
| Outstanding shares-11,891,896 in 2026 and 11,880,759 in 2025 | 2,021 | 2,021 | ||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 147,643 | 147,442 | ||||||
| Retained earnings | 754,938 | 741,793 | ||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive income/(loss) | (95,276 | ) | (86,681 | ) | ||||
| Less: Treasury shares at cost-4,314,908 in 2026 and 4,309,398 in 2025 | (154,038 | ) | (153,706 | ) | ||||
| TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY | 655,288 | 650,869 | ||||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY | $ | 6,128,589 | $ | 5,756,126 | ||||
| CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (Dollar amounts in thousands, except per share data) | ||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| March 31, | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| INTEREST INCOME: | ||||||||
| Loans, including related fees | $ | 67,521 | $ | 63,612 | ||||
| Securities: | ||||||||
| Taxable | 6,536 | 6,002 | ||||||
| Tax-exempt | 2,864 | 2,604 | ||||||
| Other | 1,025 | 814 | ||||||
| TOTAL INTEREST INCOME | 77,946 | 73,032 | ||||||
| INTEREST EXPENSE: | ||||||||
| Deposits | 16,629 | 18,199 | ||||||
| Short-term borrowings | 2,352 | 1,693 | ||||||
| Other borrowings | 2,032 | 1,165 | ||||||
| TOTAL INTEREST EXPENSE | 21,013 | 21,057 | ||||||
| NET INTEREST INCOME | 56,933 | 51,975 | ||||||
| Provision for credit losses | 2,550 | 1,950 | ||||||
| NET INTEREST INCOME AFTER PROVISION | ||||||||
| FOR LOAN LOSSES | 54,383 | 50,025 | ||||||
| NON-INTEREST INCOME: | ||||||||
| Trust and financial services | 1,491 | 1,393 | ||||||
| Service charges and fees on deposit accounts | 7,382 | 7,585 | ||||||
| Other service charges and fees | 374 | 316 | ||||||
| Interchange income | 186 | 214 | ||||||
| Loan servicing fees | 326 | 165 | ||||||
| Gain on sales of mortgage loans | 294 | 225 | ||||||
| Bargain purchase gain | 716 | — | ||||||
| Other | 448 | 613 | ||||||
| TOTAL NON-INTEREST INCOME | 11,217 | 10,511 | ||||||
| NON-INTEREST EXPENSE: | ||||||||
| Salaries and employee benefits | 21,361 | 19,248 | ||||||
| Occupancy expense | 2,958 | 2,676 | ||||||
| Equipment expense | 5,340 | 4,505 | ||||||
| FDIC Expense | 690 | 750 | ||||||
| Other | 10,530 | 9,580 | ||||||
| TOTAL NON-INTEREST EXPENSE | 40,879 | 36,759 | ||||||
| INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES | 24,721 | 23,777 | ||||||
| Provision for income taxes | 4,917 | 5,371 | ||||||
| NET INCOME | 19,804 | 18,406 | ||||||
| OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) | ||||||||
| Change in unrealized gains/(losses) on securities, net of reclassifications and taxes | (8,674 | ) | 11,100 | |||||
| Change in funded status of post retirement benefits, net of taxes | 79 | 3 | ||||||
| COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) | $ | 11,209 | $ | 29,509 | ||||
| PER SHARE DATA | ||||||||
| Basic and Diluted Earnings per Share | $ | 1.67 | $ | 1.55 | ||||
| Weighted average number of shares outstanding (in thousands) | 11,885 | 11,842 | ||||||
