First Hawaiian Bank said it earned $51.3 million during the first quarter.

The results compared with the year-earlier's net income of $74.5 million, which included a one-time, $25 million tax gain.

Excluding the gain, First Hawaiian's first-quarter income rose 2.8 percent.

"The bank experienced a respectable quarter and our overall fundamentals remain strong," said Don Horner, First Hawaiian's chairman and CEO.

"We note that consumer confidence is clearly improving. However, we continue to anticipate slower growth rates in 2010 as the economy remains sluggish."

First Hawaiian, the state's largest financial institution, said its assets grew 6.7 percent to a record $14.3 billion.

Deposits rose 7.3 percent to $10.2 billion while loans and leases increased 0.5 percent to $8 billion.

Nonperforming assets accounted for just 0.2 percent of First Hawaiian's overall assets, which is among the best among U.S. banks.

The conservative approach recently prompted Institutional Risk Analytics, a national bank monitoring firm, to give First Hawaiian its highest A+ rating.

First Hawaiian said its efficiency ratio was 43.8 percent, making it the most productive bank in the state and one of the most efficient in the country.

"The bank is well-positioned with strong core earnings, capital and asset quality to continue to provide our customers with both financial solutions and security," Horner said.