MUNCIE, Ind., Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- MutualFirst Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: MFSF), the holding company of MutualBank (the "Bank"), announced today net income available to common shareholders for the third quarter ended September 30, 2014 increased to $2.7 million, or $.38 for basic earnings per common share and $.36 for diluted earnings per common share. This compared to net income available to common shareholders for the same period in 2013 of $2.2 million, or $.31 for basic earnings per common share and $.30 for diluted earnings per common share. Annualized return on assets was .76% and return on average tangible common equity was 9.07% for the third quarter of 2014 compared to .71% and 8.17% respectively, for the same period of last year.

Net income available to common shareholders for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 increased to $7.2 million, or $1.01 for basic earnings per common share and $.98 for diluted earnings per common share compared to net income available to common shareholders of $5.6 million, or $.80 for basic earnings per common share and $.78 for diluted earnings per common share for the nine months ended September 30, 2013. Annualized return on assets was .69% and return on average tangible common equity was 8.30% for the nine months ended of 2014 compared to .62% and 7.00% respectively, for the same period of last year.

Other highlights for the third quarter ended September 30, 2014 included:

• MutualBank completed the acquisition of Summit Mortgage, Inc. in the third quarter.
• Gross loan balances increased by $14.4 million, or 5.8% on an annualized basis in the third quarter of 2014.
• Deposits increased $19.5 million in the third quarter of 2014.
• Tangible common equity to total assets is 8.42% and tangible book value per share is $16.55 as of September 30, 2014 compared to tangible common equity to total assets of 7.92% and tangible book value per share of $15.46 as of December 31, 2013.
• Net interest income increased $400,000 compared to the third quarter of 2013 and increased $82,000 on a linked quarter basis.
• Non-interest income increased $300,000 compared to the third quarter of 2013 and $160,000 on a linked quarter basis.
• Non-interest expense increased $1.2 million compared to the third quarter of 2013 and $555,000 on a linked quarter basis.

"We continue to see improvement in all of our key performance areas," said David W. Heeter, President and CEO. "Our earnings momentum has come from loan growth, continued growth in core deposit accounts and improved credit quality."

Balance Sheet

Assets increased $25.2 million as of September 30, 2014 compared to December 31, 2013, primarily due to the increase in the gross loan portfolio of $29.3 million. The increase in the gross loan portfolio was primarily due to an increase in commercial loans of $19.9 million and an increase in non-real estate consumer loans of $14.9 million. These increases were offset by a decrease in the consumer residential loan portfolio of $5.5 million. In the third quarter of 2014, gross loans increased $14.4 million as non-real estate consumer loans increased by $5.8 million, commercial loans increased by $5.7 million and consumer residential loans increased by $2.9 million. Mortgage loans held for sale increased by $4.6 million since December 31, 2013. The Bank has been selling most fixed rate loans originated in 2014 to mitigate interest rate risk, and mortgage loans sold during the first nine months of 2014 totaled $36.5 million compared to $59.4 million in the first nine months of 2013. The decline is a result of slower loan production in 2014 compared to 2013.

Deposits decreased by $14.2 million in the first nine months of 2014. The decrease in deposits has been primarily in certificates of deposit, which decreased $54.2 million, while core transactional deposits increased $40.0 million in the first nine months of 2014. Core transactional deposits increased to 62% of the Bank's total deposits as of September 30, 2014 compared to 58% as of December 31, 2013. During the third quarter of 2014, deposits increased by $19.5 million as core transactional deposits increased $23.5 million offset by a decrease in certificates of deposit of $3.9 million.

Allowance for loan losses was $13.2 million as of September 30, 2014 compared to $13.4 million as of December 31, 2013. Net recoveries in the third quarter were $6,000 and net charge offs for the first nine months of 2014 were $1.0 million, or .14% of total loans on an annualized basis. The allowance for loan losses to non-performing loans as of September 30, 2014 was 157.5% compared to 216.7% as of June 30, 2014 and 156.2% as of December 31, 2013. Non-performing loans increased $2.4 million on a linked quarter basis primarily due to three loans totaling $2.2 million. The allowance for loan losses to total loans as of September 30, 2014 was 1.31% compared to 1.33% as of June 30, 2014 and 1.37% as of December 31, 2013.

Stockholders' equity was $122.1 million at September 30, 2014, an increase of $10.5 million from December 31, 2013. The increase was primarily a result of net income of $7.2 million, an increase in other comprehensive income of $3.9 million and $950,000 from exercised stock options. These increases were partially offset by $1.6 million of common stock dividends returned to shareholders. The Company's tangible book value per share as of September 30, 2014 increased to $16.55 compared to $15.46 as of December 31, 2013 and its tangible common equity ratio increased to 8.42% as of September 30, 2014 compared to 7.92% as of December 31, 2013. MFSF and the Bank's risk-based capital ratios were well in excess of "well-capitalized" levels as defined by all regulatory standards as of September 30, 2014.

Income Statement

Net interest income before the provision for loan losses increased $400,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2014 compared to the same period in 2013. The increase was a result of an $11.5 million increase in average earning assets and an increase of 9 basis points in the net interest margin to 3.26%. The increase in average earning assets was primarily an increase of $26.2 million in loans, partially funded by a $16.6 million decline in investments On a linked quarter basis, net interest income before the provision for loan losses increased $82,000 as average earnings asset increased by $15.4 million, partially offset by a 2 basis point reduction in net interest margin.

Net interest income before the provision for loan losses increased $1.4 million for the first nine months of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013. The increase was a result of a 16 basis point increase in net interest margin. The increase was partially offset by a $4.6 million decline in average earnings assets due to a decrease in average investments of $15.2 million primarily offset by average loan growth of $11.2 million.

No provision for loan loss was recorded for the third quarter of 2014 compared to $750,000 during last year's comparable period. The decrease was due to management's ongoing evaluation of the adequacy of the allowance for loan losses, which was partially attributable to improving credit quality and declining net charge offs. Recoveries exceeded charge offs by $6,000 in the third quarter of 2014 compared to net charge offs of $2.0 million in the third quarter of 2013. Non-performing loans to total loans at September 30, 2014 were .83% compared to 1.38% at September 30, 2013. Non-performing assets to total assets was 1.08% at September 30, 2014 compared to 1.46% at September 30, 2013.

The provision for loan losses for the first nine months of 2014 decreased to $850,000 compared to $2.3 million during last year's comparable period. The decrease was primarily due to a decline in net charge offs and improving asset quality. Net charge offs through the first nine months of 2014 have been $1.0 million compared to $3.8 million over the comparable period in 2013. Non-performing loans to total loans at September 30, 2014 were .83% compared to .88% at December 31, 2013. This decrease in non-performing loans was primarily in commercial business loans.

Non-interest income for the third quarter of 2014 was $3.6 million, an increase of $300,000 compared to the third quarter of 2013. Increases in non-interest income included increased gain on sale of loans of $360,000 and increased other income of $96,000 partially as a result of the acquisition of Summit Mortgage, Inc. Service fee income on deposit accounts also increased $72,000, which was primarily due to increased interchange income, and commission income increased by $186,000 mainly due to increases in wealth management, trust and brokerage lines of business. These increases were offset primarily by a decline in gain on sale of investments of $378,000. On a linked quarter basis, non-interest income increased $160,000, primarily due to the income from Summit Mortgage, Inc. which was partially offset by a decline in gain on sale of investments.

Non-interest income for the first nine months of 2014 was $9.9 million, a decrease of $510,000 compared to the first nine months of 2013. The decrease was primarily due to a reduction of $426,000 in net servicing fees primarily due to mortgage servicing right valuation recoveries in 2013 that were not repeated in 2014. Other declines were in gain on sale of investments of $399,000 and increased loss on real estate owned sales of $268,000. These declines were offset by increased commission income of $292,000 from wealth management, trust and brokerage services and gain on sale of loans of $275,000 from increased loan production as a result of the acquisition of Summit Mortgage, Inc.

Non-interest expense increased $1.2 million when comparing the third quarter of 2014 with the same period in 2013. This increase was partially due to one-time expense reductions in the third quarter of 2013 that were not repeated in 2014. These included a reduction in health insurance expense of $300,000 and property tax refunds of $350,000. The increase in non-interest expense excluding the one-time reductions in 2013 was $558,000. Salaries and benefits increased by $506,000, without the health insurance expense reduction in 2013, primarily due to the acquisition of Summit Mortgage, Inc. and increases in accrual for commission and incentive expenses. On a linked quarter basis, non-interest expense increased $555,000 primarily due to an increase of $588,000 in salaries and benefits resulting from the acquisition of Summit Mortgage, Inc. and increases in commission and incentive expenses during the third quarter of 2014.

Non-interest expense increased $1.5 million when comparing the first nine months of 2014 with the same period in 2013. The reasons for the increase were the same as discussed earlier.

Heeter concluded, "We are striving to increase shareholder value in everything we do. We believe the acquisition of the mortgage company in Ft. Wayne, Indiana will provide us additional opportunities to grow customers, loan balances and non-interest income in a larger Indiana market."

MutualFirst Financial, Inc. is the parent company of MutualBank, an Indiana-based financial institution. MutualBank has thirty full-service retail financial centers in Delaware, Elkhart, Grant, Kosciusko, Randolph, St. Joseph and Wabash Counties in Indiana. MutualBank has two offices located in Carmel and Crawfordsville, Indiana specializing in wealth management and trust services and a loan origination office in New Buffalo, Michigan. MutualBank also operates a wholly owned subsidiary of Summit Mortgage which operates out of Fort Wayne, Indiana. MutualBank is a leading mortgage lender in each of the market areas it serves, and provides a full range of financial services including business banking, wealth management, trust services, investments and internet banking services. The Company's stock is traded on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol "MFSF" and can be found on the internet at www.bankwithmutual.com.

Statements contained in this release, which are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors, which include, but are not limited to, factors discussed in documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time.

CONTACT: Chris Cook, Senior Vice President, Treasurer and CFO of MutualFirst Financial, Inc. (765) 747-2945