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1 First BanCorp News Release • • • FIRST BANCORP . ANNOUNCES EARNINGS FOR THE QUARTER ENDED SEPTEMBER 30 , 2021 Net income of $ 75.7 million , or $ 0.36 per diluted share , for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to $ 70.6 million , or $ 0.33 per diluted share , for the second quarter of 2021. The net income for the third and second quarters of 2021 included the following items of note : Provision for credit losses was a net benefit of $ 12.1 million ( $ 7.6 million after - tax , or an increase of $ 0.04 per diluted share ) for the third quarter of 2021 , reflecting , among other things , improvements in the outlook of certain macroeconomic variables and lower loans outstanding . The provision for credit losses for the second quarter of 2021 was a net benefit of $ 26.2 million ( $ 16.3 million after - tax , or an increase of $ 0.08 per diluted share ) . Merger and restructuring costs of $ 2.3 million for the third quarter of 2021 ( $ 1.4 million after - tax , or a decrease of $ 0.01 per diluted share ) associated with the acquisition of Banco Santander Puerto Rico ( " BSPR " ) , compared to $ 11.0 million for the second quarter of 2021 ( $ 6.9 million after - tax , or a decrease of $ 0.03 per diluted share ) . Early in the third quarter of 2021 , First BanCorp completed the conversion of the remaining BSPR's core systems into FirstBank's systems with the conversion of the deposit , debit card , online banking , automated teller machine ( " ATM " ) , and cash management platforms . Income before income taxes of $ 112.7 million for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to $ 110.7 million for the second quarter of 2021 . On a non - GAAP basis , adjusted pre - tax , pre - provision income of $ 103.6 million for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to $ 96.6 million for the second quarter of 2021 . Net interest income remained relatively flat at $ 184.7 million for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to $ 184.8 million for the second quarter of 2021 . Net interest margin was 3.60 % for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to 3.81 % for the second quarter of 2021. The decrease was primarily attributable to a change in asset mix resulting from average lower- yielding cash balances and investment securities increasing $ 1.2 billion to 45 % of total average interest- earning assets in the third quarter , compared to 41 % in the second quarter , associated with the growth in average deposits . In addition , the average total loan portfolio balance during the third quarter declined to 55 % of total average interest - earning assets , compared to 59 % in the second quarter . Non - interest income of $ 29.9 million for the third quarter of 2021 remained relatively unchanged compared to the second quarter of 2021 as the increase in fee income from credit and debit cards , ATMs , and point- of - sale ( " POS " ) transactions was offset by decreases in revenues from mortgage banking activities and service charges on deposits . Non - interest expenses decreased by $ 16.2 million to $ 114.0 million for the third quarter of 2021 , compared to $ 130.2 million for the second quarter of 2021. Total non - interest expenses for the third quarter of 2021 included $ 2.3 million of merger and restructuring costs , compared to $ 11.0 million in the second quarter of 2021 , as well as $ 0.6 million of COVID - 19 pandemic - related expenses , compared to $ 1.1 million in the second quarter of 2021. Adjusted for those costs , total non - interest expenses decreased by $ 6.9 million compared to the second quarter of 2021 .