message to the shareholders ofFacing a headwind of intense competition and a flat interest rate environment, your Company still posted record earnings for 2006. Earnings per share rose to $2.05, an increase of $.06 over last year’s record performance. Behind the growth in income was a disappointing year in terms of asset growth. We were challenged by an unusually high level of paybacks within our loan portfolio. This was driven, in large part, by the completion of several large development projects within our markets, coupled with the on-going national trend of mortgage refinancing. Deposits grew very little, as financial institutions everywhere competed for the available pool of funding.
New peaks were reached by our Trust Department, as assets under management surpassed the half-billion mark and income soared by over 12% to $3.6 million. As the demand for wealth management services continues to increase, First United is well positioned to meet this need. Our continued success in Trust, coupled with high expectations for our brokerage and
In 2006, First United continued expansion into some of our growth markets. As the table in our 10-K indicates, we have tremendous market opportunities in some of the fastest growing counties in the entire Mid-Atlantic region. We completed construction of our second office in Morgantown, West Virginia, and are nearing the opening of our second office in Hagerstown, Maryland.
As we have discussed in these pages before, First United is uniquely positioned to grow and prosper in these markets. First United is smaller in size than many of its competitors who are large national banks or multi-bank holding companies. We are of a size that fosters responsive and customized solutions for our customers. We have the opportunity to build long-term relationships and to offer a level of service that is sought by customers put off by transient and hurried service. At the same time, we are sufficiently large enough to provide the full array of services and solutions
