Farmers & Merchants Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: FMAO) released its financial results for the fourth quarter and the entire year of 2024 on February 12, 2025. The company reported a significant rise in net income during the fourth quarter, with earnings reaching $8.4 million, or $0.61 per share. This marks a 51.2% increase compared to $5.5 million, or $0.41 per share, in the same period of 2023. For the full year of 2024, net income rose to $17.6 million, up from $17.2 million the previous year.
Supporting these results, the asset quality of the company improved notably. Nonperforming loans were reduced to $3.1 million by the end of 2024, a substantial decrease from $22.4 million a year earlier. The allowance for credit losses was robust, covering 826.70% of nonperforming loans. Operational efficiency also showed positive trends, with the efficiency ratio improving to 59.82% in Q4 2024 from 69.23% in Q4 2023.
In terms of capital and liquidity, Farmers & Merchants Bancorp maintained a strong position with a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 8.12%. The bank closed 2024 with over $690 million in contingent funding sources and improved its cash-to-assets ratio to 5.3% from 4.3% at the end of 2023. Reuters noted that the board approved a 3.8% increase in the annual dividend, marking the 30th consecutive year of dividend growth since 1994. These developments reflect the company's strategic focus on enhancing financial performance and delivering value to shareholders.