Hilltop Community Bancorp, Inc. (HTBC) reported net income of $191,000, or $0.07 per share, for the third quarter of 2009 ending 9/30/2009. The bank earned $266,000, or $0.10 per share, in the same quarter last year.

Hilltop Community Bancorp, Inc. issued preferred stock to the U.S. Treasury as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Plan (TARP) passed by Congress in 2008. The bank has not yet redeemed this issue and paid a dividend of $64,000 as required.

Hilltop Community Bancorp, Inc. ended the quarter with assets of $167.5 million and loans of $110.81 million. The bank has set aside an amount equal to 1.55% of its total loans as an allowance for loan and lease losses.

Richard D. Wellbrock, the CEO of Hilltop Community Bancorp, Inc., said, “Our strategy to allow higher cost deposits to flow out of Hilltop to other institutions is paying off…. our net interest margin has dramatically improved, back over the 4% level on a tax equivalent basis for the third quarter.”

The bank also managed to grow its tangible book value on a year over year basis, from $6.56 in September 2008 to $6.66 at the end of the third quarter of 2009.

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