Rockville Bank parent’s 1Q net climbs

The parent of Rockville Bank in Vernon saw its first quarter earnings jump 49 percent, pushed upward by strong gains on investments and mortgage sales.

Rockville Financial said its first-quarter earnings were $2.9 million in the three months ended March 31, up from $1.9 million the period last year. The holding company did not release per-share amounts.

The bank's net interest income, or earnings on investments and loans, increased $2.1 million in the quarter to $13.4 million.

Rockville's non-interest income during the quarter increased by $696,000 to $1.7 million, the result of gains on investments and mortgage sales.

The bank, which operates 21 branches in Hartford, New London and Tolland counties, also set aside $903,000 in the quarter to cover loans that may go bad in the future. That was a $ 604,000 increase compared to the $299,000 the bank set aside in the first quarter of 2009.

Assets at the bank stayed relatively stable from a year ago at $1.6 billion.