EXHIBIT 99.1

For Immediate Release

First Hawaiian, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2017 Financial Results and Declares Dividend

HONOLULU, Hawaii April 27, 2017—(Globe Newswire)—First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ:FHB), (the “Company”) today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2017.

First Quarter Highlights

Net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 was $56.7 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, and core net income1 was $57.0 million, or $0.41 per diluted share

Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.22 per share

Successful follow-on stock offering completed in February 2017. BNP Paribas sold 28.75 million shares, reducing its ownership level to 62%

“We are pleased to start 2017 with a solid first quarter. Loans and leases grew to a record $11.8 billion, we maintained our expense discipline and our credit quality remained excellent,” said Bob Harrison, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “BNP Paribas also continued to reduce their ownership interest in First Hawaiian with a successful follow-on stock offering of 28.75 million shares. This reduced BNP Paribas’ ownership in First Hawaiian, Inc. to 62%.”

On April 26, 2017, the Company’s Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.22 per share. The dividend will be payable on June 9, 2017 to stockholders of record at the close of business on May 30, 2017.

Earnings Highlights

Net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 was $56.7 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, compared to $56.6 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, and $65.5 million, or $0.47 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2016. Results from the quarter ended March 31, 2016 included $25.7 million ($16.0 million net of tax) gains from securities sales. Core net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 was $57.0 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, compared to $56.0 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, and $51.1 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2016.

Net interest income for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 was $129.3 million, a decrease of $2.0 million compared to $131.3 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, and an increase of $12.0 million compared to $117.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2016. The decrease in net interest income compared to the fourth quarter of 2016 was primarily due to lower yields on loans and higher average deposit balances and rates, partially offset by higher yields on investment securities and interest bearing deposits. Loan yields in the fourth quarter of 2016 were favorably impacted by $2.1 million of loan prepayment fees. The increase compared to the first quarter of 2016 was due to higher average balances of loans and investments and higher yields on investment securities and interest bearing deposits, partially offset by lower yields on loans and higher average deposit balances and rates.

Net interest margin was 3.00%, 2.99% and 2.77% for the quarters ended March 31, 2017, December 31, 2016, and March 31, 2016, respectively. Excluding the $2.1 million in loan prepayment fees in the quarter ended December 31, 2016, net interest margin increased during the first quarter of 2017 by six basis points, primarily due to higher earning asset yields, partially offset by higher costs related to time deposits. The 23 basis point increase compared to the first quarter of 2016 was due to higher yields on investments and interest bearing deposits, partially offset by lower loan yields and higher deposit costs.

Results for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 included a provision for credit losses of $4.5 million compared to $3.9 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2016 and $0.7 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2016. The first quarter of 2016 included a recovery of $3.1 million on a previously charged-off commercial real estate loan.

1Core net income is a non-GAAP measure. For more information on this measure, including a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measure, see “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and Tables 11 and 12 at the end of this document.

Noninterest income was $49.4 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2017, an increase of $0.4 million compared to noninterest income of $49.0 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2016 and a decrease of $24.1 million compared to noninterest income of $73.5 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2016. The first quarter of 2017 included gains of $1.3 million from death benefits from bank-owned life insurance (BOLI). The fourth quarter of 2016 included $1.5 million of net gains from the sale of securities. The first quarter of 2016 included a $22.7 million net gain on the sale of Visa Class B restricted shares, and $3.1 million of net gains on the sales of securities.

Noninterest expense was $84.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2017, an increase of $1.8 million from $82.5 million in the quarter ended December 31, 2016, and a decrease of $0.7 million from $85.1 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2016. The increase in noninterest expense compared to the fourth quarter of 2016 was primarily due to $2.8 million higher salaries and employee benefits expense and $1.2 million higher other expense, partially offset by $1.9 million lower contracted services and professional fees and $0.6 million lower equipment expense. The increase in salaries and employee benefits expense was largely due to annual merit increases, increased overtime expenses and higher payroll taxes. Contracted services and professional fees in the fourth quarter of 2016 were elevated as a result expenses related to system upgrades and product enhancements. The decrease in noninterest expense compared to the first quarter of 2016 was primarily due to a $2.4 million decrease in contracted services and professional fees, and a $1.4 million decrease in salaries and employee benefits, partially offset by $1.3 million higher regulatory assessment and fees, and $1.0 million higher cards reward expenses. Contracted services and professional fees in the first quarter of 2016 included $2.5 million of fees related to the initial public offering. The decrease in salaries and employee benefits compared to the first quarter of 2016 was primarily due to an increase in deferred loan origination costs in the first quarter of 2017. The increase in regulatory assessments was largely due to the increase in the regulatory assessment rate that became effective July 1, 2016.

The efficiency ratio was 47.2%, 45.8% and 44.6% for the quarters ended March 31, 2017, December 31, 2016 and March 31, 2016, respectively.

The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2017 was 36.9% compared with 39.8% in the previous quarter and 37.6% percent in the same quarter last year. The decrease in the effective tax rate in the first quarter of 2017 compared to the prior quarters was primarily due to the higher level of BOLI income received in the first quarter of 2017.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Total assets were $19.8 billion at March 31, 2017, compared to $19.7 billion at December 31, 2016 and $19.1 billion at March 31, 2016.

The investment securities portfolio was $5.3 billion at March 31, 2017, compared to $5.1 billion at December 31, 2016 and $3.9 billion at March 31, 2016. The portfolio remains largely comprised of securities issued by U.S. government agencies.

Total loans and leases were $11.8 billion at March 31, 2017, an increase of $261.1 million, or 2.3%, from $11.5 billion at December 31, 2016 and up $818.9 million, or 7.5%, from $11.0 billion at March 31, 2016. The growth in loans and leases compared to December 31, 2016 was largely due to strong growth in the commercial real estate and residential loan segments of the portfolio. Compared to March 31, 2016, the growth in loans and leases was due to increases across all loan categories.

Total deposits were $16.9 billion at March 31, 2017, an increase of $143.6 million, or 0.9%, compared with $16.8 billion at December 31, 2016, and an increase of $883.7 million, or 5.5%, compared to $16.1 billion at March 31, 2016.

Asset Quality

The Company’s asset quality remained solid during the first quarter of 2017. Total non-performing assets declined to $7.7 million, or 0.07% of total loans and leases, at March 31, 2017, down $2.1 million from non-performing assets of $9.8 million, or 0.08% of total loans and leases, at December 31, 2016 and down $6.9 million from nonperforming assets of $14.6 million, or 0.13% of total loans and leases, at March 31, 2016.

Net charge offs for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 were $4.1 million, or 0.15% of average loans and leases on an annualized basis, compared to $3.4 million, or 0.12% of average loans and leases on an annualized basis for the quarter ended December 31, 2016 and a net recovery of $1.0 million, or (0.04)% of average loans and leases on an annualized basis for the quarter ended March 31, 2016.

The ratio of allowance for loan and lease losses to total loans and leases was 1.15% at March 31, 2017 compared to 1.18% at December 31, 2016 and 1.25% at March 31, 2016.

Capital

Total stockholders' equity was $2.5 billion at March 31, 2017, December 31, 2016 and March 31, 2016.

The tier 1 leverage, common equity tier 1, and total capital ratios were 8.52%, 12.78% and 13.87%, respectively, at March 31, 2017, compared with 8.36%, 12.75% and 13.85% at December 31, 2016 and 8.18%, 12.55%, 13.71% at March 31, 2016.

First Hawaiian, Inc.

First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ:FHB) is a bank holding company headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.  Its principal subsidiary, First Hawaiian Bank, founded in 1858 under the name Bishop & Company, is Hawaii’s oldest and largest financial institution with branch locations throughout Hawaii, Guam and Saipan. The company offers a comprehensive suite of banking services to consumer and commercial customers including deposit products, loans, wealth management, insurance, trust, retirement planning, credit card and merchant processing services.  Customers may also access their accounts through ATMs, online and mobile banking channels. For more information about First Hawaiian, Inc., visit the Company’s website, www.fhb.com.

Conference Call Information

First Hawaiian will host a conference call to discuss the Company’s results today at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, 11:00 a.m. Hawaii Time. To access the call, participants should dial (844) 452-2942 (US/Canada), or (574) 990-9846 (International) ten minutes prior to the start of the call and enter the conference ID: 5236509. A live webcast of the conference call, including a slide presentation, will be available at the following link:  http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/7haxtmwy/lan/en. The archive of the webcast will be available at the same location. A telephonic replay of the conference call will be available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call until 8:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) on May 7, 2017. Access the replay by dialing (855) 859-2056 or (404) 537-3406 and entering the conference ID: 5236509.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to, among other things, future events and our financial performance. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as “may”, “might”, “should”, “could”, “predict”, “potential”, “believe”, “expect”, “continue”, “will”, “anticipate”, “seek”, “estimate”, “intend”, “plan”, “projection”, “would”, “annualized” and “outlook”, or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Accordingly, we caution you that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, assumptions, estimates and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, actual results may prove to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of the risks and important factors that could affect our future results and financial condition, see our U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filings, including, but not limited to, our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We present net interest income, noninterest income, noninterest expense, net income, earnings per share and the related ratios described below, on an adjusted, or ‘‘core,’’ basis, each a non-GAAP financial measure. These core measures exclude from the corresponding GAAP measure the impact of certain items that we do not believe are representative of our financial results. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures helps identify underlying trends in our business from period to period that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of certain expenses, gains and other items included in our operating results. We believe that these core measures provide useful information about our operating results and enhance the overall understanding of our past performance and future performance.  Investors should consider our performance and financial condition as reported under GAAP and all other relevant information when assessing our performance or financial condition.

Core net interest margin, core return on average total assets and core return on average total stockholders’ equity are non-GAAP financial measures. We compute our core net interest margin as the ratio of core net interest income to average earning assets.  We compute our core return on average total assets as the ratio of core net income to average total assets.  We compute our core return on average total stockholders’ equity as the ratio of core net income to average stockholders’ equity.

Return on average tangible stockholders’ equity, core return on average tangible stockholders’ equity, return on average tangible assets, core return on average tangible assets and tangible stockholders’ equity to tangible assets are non-GAAP financial measures. We compute our return on average tangible stockholders’ equity as the ratio of net income to average tangible stockholders’ equity, which is calculated by subtracting (and thereby effectively excluding) amounts related to the effect of goodwill from our average total stockholders’ equity. We compute our core return on average tangible stockholders’ equity as the ratio of core net income to average tangible stockholders’ equity, which is calculated by subtracting (and thereby effectively excluding) amounts related to the effect of goodwill from our average total stockholders’ equity. We compute our return on average tangible assets as the ratio of net income to average tangible assets, which is calculated by subtracting (and thereby effectively excluding) amounts related to the effect of goodwill from our average total assets. We compute our core return on average tangible assets as the ratio of core net income to average tangible assets. We compute our tangible stockholders’ equity to tangible assets as the ratio of tangible stockholders’ equity to tangible assets, each of which we calculate by subtracting (and thereby effectively excluding) the value of our goodwill. We believe that these measurements are useful for investors, regulators, management and others to evaluate financial performance and capital adequacy relative to other financial institutions. Although these non-GAAP financial measures are frequently used by stakeholders in the evaluation of a company, they have limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results or financial condition as reported under GAAP.

Tables 11 and 12 at the end of this document provide a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures with their most closely related GAAP measures.