First BanCorp.

Second-quarter 2026 net income was $96.1 million, or $0.63 per diluted share, versus $88 million and $0.57 per share last quarter; management said this was up 24% versus the same quarter last year. Pretax pre-provision income was $138 million, up $6 million sequentially and 11% year over year, and ROA was 2.02% versus 1.89% in the prior quarter. Net interest income was $229.1 million versus $221 million last quarter, net interest margin was 4.87% GAAP or about 4.80% excluding fee acceleration, non-interest income was $35.7 million, operating expenses were $127.3 million, and net charge-offs were $16 million, or 49 basis points of average loans, down from 65 basis points. Loans ended at $13.3 billion, total deposit balances rose by $274 million, allowance for credit losses was $145 million or 1.85% of total loans, and CET1 was 17%. Forward guidance: management reaffirmed full-year loan growth guidance of 3% to 5% and expects margin expansion of 3 to 5 basis points per quarter from the 4.80% base for the rest of 2026. It also guided quarterly expenses, excluding OREO gains or losses, to $128 million to $130 million and said the efficiency ratio should be closer to the low end of its 50% to 52% range.

Aurelio Alemán-Bermúdez framed the quarter as another period of strong core performance, broad growth, and disciplined execution. He emphasized accelerating commercial loan growth in Puerto Rico and improving activity in Florida, saying the company sees enough pipeline support to keep activity strong through the rest of the year and reach its 3% to 5% loan-growth target. He also highlighted capital flexibility, ongoing buybacks and dividends, and continued investment in technology, cloud, branches, and AI to improve efficiency and customer experience.

Said Ortiz gave the detailed bridge behind the quarter’s results, noting the $96.1 million of net income, $0.63 diluted EPS, and $138 million of pretax pre-provision income. He said $3.4 million of additional interest income came from two refinancings, and excluding that impact, net income would have been about $93 million or $0.60 per share. He also pointed to a 12 bp sequential NIM increase to 4.87% GAAP, deposit costs down 2 bps overall, expenses of $127.3 million, an efficiency ratio of 48.1%, allowance of $145 million (1.85% of loans), net charge-offs of $16 million, and CET1 remaining strong despite $50 million of buybacks and $31 million of dividends.

Analysts pressed on loan growth mix, margin drivers, deposit competition, capital deployment, expense discipline, and the uptick in early delinquencies. Management said loan growth was mainly commercial, with contributions from CRE, construction, C&I, some government refinancing, and some strength in auto/consumer; it also said the margin benefit came from both asset yield improvement and the investment portfolio repricing, with about $1.2 billion of securities repricing over the next 18 months. On deposits, management said government balances can be volatile but have been broadly stable, while core pricing remains pressured but manageable. On delinquencies, management said the increase looked seasonal and normalized versus the strong first quarter, with no sign it should continue.