PRESQUE ISLE — First Citizens Bank has announced record first-quarter earnings of $174,090, as compared to $135,741 for the same period last year. “I am very pleased to report that our net earnings for the first quarter of 1999 are 28 percent ahead of last year’s earnings,” said David I. Dorsey, president and CEO.

The bank’s board of directors approved a dividend of 14 cents per share on first-quarter earnings at its March 23 meeting. The first-quarter dividend for 1999 reflects a 17 percent increase over the dividend paid for the same period a year ago.

As of March 31, the bank’s total assets were $109.4 million, an increase of $7.3 million, or 7 percent, over the previous year. Loans were $83.6 million at the end of the quarter, while deposits grew $8.7 million, or 10 percent, reaching $94.7 million on March 31, 1999. Shareholders’ equity also increased by 6 percent.

First Citizens Bank is the only independent commercial bank with headquarters in Aroostook County. It provides consumer and commercial banking services to thousands of customers in northern Maine through its five offices located in Fort Kent, Caribou, Presque Isle, Houlton and Lincoln.