Irwin Links Earnings Decline to Mortgage Ops

Irwin Financial Corp., Columbus, Ind. -- which recently announced that its conventional mortgage banking unit, Irwin Mortgage, is for sale -- has reported net income of $6.5 million ($0.23 per share) for the fourth quarter, compared with $13.9 million ($0.47 per share) a year earlier, a decline it attributed to a loss in its mortgage banking operations.The loss in the mortgage banking segment totaled $2.6 million in the fourth quarter, compared with net income of $1.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2004, the company reported. For the full year, Irwin reported net income of $19.0 million ($0.66 per share), compared with $68.4 million ($2.28 per share) in 2004. "Consolidated net revenues decreased on a sequential quarter basis largely due to reduced secondary-market gains on mortgage loan sales, [mortgage servicing rights] impairment, and the absence of mortgage servicing sales in the current period," Irwin said. The company can be found online at http://www.irwinfinancial.com.