The parent company of Central Pacific Bank said its earnings rose 53 percent during the first three months of the year, its third consecutive profitable quarter.

Net income was $2.6 million, or 3 cents per diluted share, in the first quarter, up from $1.7 million, or 6 cents per diluted share, in the same period a year earlier, according to Central Pacific Financial Corp.

"As we navigate through this challenging economic downturn, we are encouraged by the progress we have made in strengthening our liquidity, capital and franchise for the long term," said Ronald K. Migita, chairman, president and chief executive officer.

Migita said the first quarter was highlighted by strong deposit growth and the origination of a record number of residential mortgage loans in the Hawai'i market.

Central Pacific's stock closed at $5.86 on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, down 2 cents.

CPF increased its core deposits by $173.1 million, or 6.2 percent, during the quarter. Mortgage originations in Hawai'i totaled $597.5 million, up 62 percent from the same period a year earlier.

Total assets were $5.4 billion at the end of March, down 6.4 percent from a year earlier. Assets were virtually unchanged from the end of December.

The bank also reported it increased allowance for loan and lease losses, as a percentage of total loans and leases, to 3.20 percent at the end of March from 2.97 percent at the end of December.

Net interest income, the difference between what the bank earns on loans and what it pays on deposits, fell to $46.5 million, down 8.6 percent from a year earlier.

Central Pacific continued to reduce its exposure to the troubled market in residential real estate loans in California. Nonperforming assets related to this sector totaled $52.8 million at the end of March, 0.97 percent of total assets. That was down from $54.2 million, 1.01 percent of total assets, at the end of December.

In January, the company received $135 million from the federal Capital Purchase Program. The company, which issued senior preferred stock to the government in the deal, said the current quarter's earnings per share reflect dividends and accretion on the preferred stock totaling $1.9 million.