Primis Financial (FRST) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Net income for Q1 2026 was $7.3 million ($0.30 per share), down from $22.6 million ($0.92 per share) in Q1 2025 due to a large nonrecurring gain last year, while operating net income rose to $8.1 million ($0.33 per share), up 126% year-over-year.

• Operating net income surged 242% quarter-over-quarter, with strong performance across core bank, mortgage warehouse, and Panacea divisions.

• Tangible book value per share increased 18% year-over-year to $13.47.

• Growth strategy focused on core community bank, mortgage warehouse, Panacea lending, and Primis Mortgage Company.

• Quarterly cash dividend of $0.10 per share declared, marking the 58th consecutive quarterly dividend.

Financial highlights

• Net interest income rose to $32.1 million, up 22% year-over-year, with net interest margin expanding to 3.43%.

• Loans ended at $3.4 billion, up 11.7% year-over-year, and deposits reached $3.42 billion, with noninterest-bearing checking accounts up nearly 19%.

• Noninterest income was $14 million, down from $32 million in Q1 2025 due to a $25 million nonrecurring gain last year; excluding this, noninterest income nearly doubled.

• Noninterest expenses rose 4% to $34 million, mainly due to higher personnel and occupancy costs.

• Allowance for credit losses to total loans was 1.37%, down from 1.40% at year-end 2025.

Outlook and guidance

• Management targets a 1.0% ROAA for 2026, with continued focus on efficiency, profitability, and further net interest margin expansion.

• Mortgage production expected to reach $1.8 billion for the year, with profitability trending above 60 basis points on closed volume.

• Noninterest income anticipated to improve by $1.2 million annually from bank-owned life insurance restructuring starting late Q2 2026.

• Full benefit of lower interest expense from repayment of senior subordinated notes expected in Q2 2026.

• Core expenses projected to remain in the $22-$23 million range for the year.