Cathay General Bancorp (CATY) Q2 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Net income for Q2 2026 was $92.2 million, up 19% year-over-year and 6% sequentially, with EPS at $1.37 and ROAA at 1.52%.

• Total assets reached $24.7 billion, with loans at $20.62 billion and deposits at $21.06 billion, both showing solid growth.

• Board increased share repurchase authorization to $200 million and approved redeeming $54.1 million of Trust Preferred Securities.

• Efficiency ratio improved to 41.53% from 45.34% year-over-year.

Financial highlights

• Net interest income was $200.9 million, up $6.7 million QoQ and $19.7 million YoY; NIM expanded to 3.48%.

• Non-interest income rose to $21.4 million, driven by equity security gains and higher wealth management fees, offset by securities losses.

• Non-interest expense increased to $92.3 million, mainly due to LIHTC amortization and higher employee costs.

• Tangible book value per share increased 10.4% year-over-year to $39.93.

• Provision for credit losses remained flat at $11.2 million for Q2 2026.

Outlook and guidance

• Full-year 2026 loan and deposit growth expected at 3.5%-4.5% and 3%-4%, respectively.

• NIM projected between 3.40% and 3.50%; effective tax rate estimated at 21.00%-22.00%.

• No rate cuts expected; a 25bps rate hike anticipated in September.

• Management expects adequate liquidity for the next twelve months, supported by strong deposit growth and borrowing capacity.