IBC: Net income fell 16 percent in first quarter ...

International Bancshares Corp. reported Thursday that its net income fell by 16 percent in the first quarter.

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The Associated Press

International Bancshares Corp. on Thursday said its net income fell 16 percent in the first quarter primarily because of a tax judgment.

For the three months ending March 31, the bank holding company earned $28.8 million, or 42 cents per share. That compared with $34.3 million, or 50 cents per share in the year-ago period.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of 47 cents per share. The stock of International Bancshares slipped fell 69 cents, or 3 percent, to $21.50 in afternoon trading.

The results took into account a tax judgment involving Local Financial Corp., which International Bancshares bought in 2004.

The dispute involves claims by former Local Financial shareholders over about $14 million in tax refunds received by International Bancshares. The refunds were based on deductions taken by Local Financial in connection with loan losses.

International Bancshares said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday that it was disappointed with the judgment and believes it has "a number of valid grounds for appeal" that it intends to pursue.

Meanwhile, the company said net interest income in the quarter slipped to $82.7 million, from $85.9 million.

Total non-interest income, which includes service charges and fees on accounts, rose to $71.6 million, from $42 million.

Total assets at the end of the quarter were $10.8 billion compared to $11.8 billion at the end of last year. The decrease was primarily due to the sale of mortgage-backed securities.