Merchants Financial Group, Inc. (MFGI) has announced to
Shareholders mid-year net income of $10.23 million according to MFGI
President & CEO Gregory M. Evans.
“The strength and
diversity of Merchants’ balance sheet continues to drive profitable
performance amidst a market environment of tight liquidity and interest
margins,” shared Evans. “I credit our team for enabling Merchants to
remain favorably positioned compared to the broader banking industry.”
Net
income through the second quarter was $1.1 million behind MFGI’s plan
for 2024 and $3.4 million behind 2023’s second quarter performance. A
significant driver of variance to plan included an additional provision
of $850,000 to Merchants’ Allowance for Credit Loss for the second
quarter due to identified increased risk in the consolidated loan
portfolio. In total, credit risk analysis resulted in provision
adjustments of $1.1 million more than planned through the first two
quarters of the year.
Total deposits increased slightly to
$2.25 billion, a 7.36% increase from 2023 and $27.9 million above plan.
Loan growth is being managed intentionally with total net loans
remaining stable at $2.18 billion, which is 1.52% above plan. Despite a
challenging interest rate environment, mortgage loans for the first half
of 2024 were $120.9 million. This volume exceeded Merchants’ mid-year
target by $8.3 million.
Merchants Financial Group, Inc. is a
publicly traded Company. Ownership is made up of its more than 450
employees and mostly individuals and families from southeastern
Minnesota and west-central Wisconsin.
Merchants Bank is a
full-service community bank with 23 bank locations in southeastern
Minnesota and west-central Wisconsin and a leasing division, Merchants
Bank Equipment Finance, in Edina. Headquartered in Winona, MN, MFGI has
more than $2.6 billion in assets and is one of the largest banks
chartered in the state of Minnesota. Merchants was founded in 1875.
Member FDIC.