You are given a text that consists of multiple sentences. Your task is to perform abstractive summarization on this text. Use your understanding of the content to express the main ideas and crucial details in a shorter, coherent, and natural sounding text. 
Text: First, I want to wish all a Happy New Year and that you all remain safe and healthy.
If there was ever a year where we fulfill our purpose to our customers, our people, and our communities, it was 2020.
We were more than ready.
Our job as managers is to lead through good and bad times.
When we look back at 2020, we are so proud of our people who have been so dedicated, so resilient, and who have persevered through all the challenges of 2020 while maintaining our high levels of service to our customers, giving back to the communities we serve, and delivering excellent results for our investors.
We're extremely pleased with our results.
For our customers, despite everything, we swiftly processed their service requests, applications for loan deferrals, and the rapid influx of stimulus checks.
For commercial customers, we implemented an easy to use 100% digital service for applying, processing, disbursing, and forgiving PPP loans.
Both retail and commercial customers took full advantage of the digital technology we have been providing.
As we say at OFG, [Foreign Speech].
Our people adapted quickly to working remotely.
We stepped up spending for COVID-related items such as testing, healthcare, and worksite safety.
We made significant investments to ensure our teams had robust remote work capabilities.
We also worked to do our part for our communities.
At the beginning of 2020, we supported the earthquake-affected towns in the southern part of Puerto Rico.
After that, it was COVID-related donations and securing more than $100,000 in grants for non-profits in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
In addition, we converted our internship, scholarship, and financial seminar program to virtual formats to maintain a sense of continuity during these challenging times.
We will continue in 2021 to help our customers, people, and communities to adapt to the challenging and changing COVID conditions.
Please turn to Page 4.
As you can see in this slide, we continued to see higher percentage adoption in all banking technologies.
I am particularly pleased with the 50,000 online appointments made through our digital platforms and our online bill and loan payment solution.
All of this made life easier for our customers during the pandemic.
It also helped further our strategic and operational goals.
In all likelihood, digital migration should build on the progress we achieved in 2020.
Please turn to Page 5 to review our fourth quarter results.
We reported earnings per share of $0.42.
It is important to note that this included three major items; $6.4 million in merger and restructuring charges [Indecipherable] Scotiabank systems conversion and integration; $3.7 million in merger and restructuring charges for branch consolidation in 2021; and $1.5 million in COVID-related spending.
All of these amounts are pre-tax.
Also keep in mind, our tax rate was 22%, that's higher than the third quarter because of the greater proportion of higher tax income, but it is also lower than our estimated tax rate in 2021, which we currently anticipate being in the 30% to 32% range.
Total core revenues were a record $133 million.
Net interest income was $99 million, similar to the third quarter.
Banking and wealth management revenues were a record $34 million.
Wealth management included $4 million in annual insurance commissions, approximately $3 million of that was from additional insurance business that came with the Scotia acquisition.
Mortgage banking included $2 million in revenues from secondary market sales of mortgages that were held back from the third quarter due to our systems conversion.
Non-interest expenses were $89 million.
Excluding the merger restructuring charge and COVID-related costs, non-interest expenses amounted to $77 million.
This reflects significant cost savings, which Maritza will discuss in a few minutes.
Regarding the balance sheet, total assets were under $10 billion as we had anticipated.
Loan production continued to be solid at $485 million and capital continued to build with the CET1 ratio increasing to 13.08%.
Looking at our numbers, we continued to see signs of recovery with solid loan production, regular payment activity, stable credit trends, and a sequential quarterly increase in banking service fees, which reflect improved day-to-day economic activity.
Now, here's Maritza to go over the financials in more detail.
Please turn to Page 6 for our financial highlights.
Let me start with tangible book value per share, one of our key areas of focus.
At close to $17, it increased more than $1 year-over-year and by $0.46 from the third quarter.
The efficiency ratio increased [Phonetic] sequentially to 67%.
When you adjust for mergers and COVID expenses, it improved about 400 basis points to 58%.
Return on average assets and tangible common equity was close to 1% and 10% respectively on a reported basis.
Excluding the merger charge and the COVID expenses, these two metrics would have been more in line with our general performance objectives.
Please turn to Page 7 for our operational highlights.
As Jose mentioned, loan generation was a solid $485 million.
That included commercial lending of $224 million, auto lending of $138 million, and mortgage lending of $98 million.
Average loan balances declined slightly from prior quarter due to paydowns and loan yields stood at 6.55%.
Average core deposits increased, but end of period balances declined $170 million on a linked quarter basis.
This was primarily due to our decision not to renew certain additional higher cost deposits.
As a result, the cost of core deposits continued to fall to 53 basis points.
Average cash balances increased $162 million during the quarter.
The result was a 6-basis point sequential decline in net interest margin to 4.24%.
Please turn to Page 8 to review credit quality.
The net charge-off rate increased to 2.67%.
That reflects our decision to charge-off to acquire Scotiabank loans that were substantially and previously reserved at the time of the acquisition.
Provision was $14.2 million.
This includes $4.7 million to cover the two chargers [Phonetic] of commercial loans acquired from the Scotiabank that I just mentioned.
Fourth quarter 2020 loan deferrals fell to 1.4% of total loans from 2% in prior quarter and 3% in the second quarter of 2020.
The non-performing loan rates for non-PCD loans remained fairly steady at 2.35%, while non-performing loan rates for PCD loans decreased from 4.26% to 2.11%.
Turning to capital, stockholders' equity increased 2% sequentially and 4% year-over-year.
The tangible common equity ratio increased to 9%, ahead of both the prior quarter and the year-ago period when we made the acquisition of Scotiabank.
Please turn to Page 8.
After holding off for most of the first half of 2020 due to the pandemic, we completed the Scotiabank cost savings program in the fourth quarter.
With the completion of the system conversion, we realized $32 million in annualized savings, exceeding our original estimate of $35 million by about 9%.
Looking ahead, we expect to benefit from our -- we expect to benefit from about two-thirds of these savings in 2021 as we plan to step up investment in the continuing transformation of our business model.
Long term, we are committed to reducing expenses and increasing operating leverage.
Our objective is to return to an efficiency ratio in the mid-50% range.
Now, here is Jose, for his outlook for 2021.
Please turn to Page 10.
We believe our history, culture -- please turn to Page 10.
We believe our history, culture, team, and approach to business as well as our most recent results demonstrate our ability to respond quickly and adapt to changing economic conditions.
During the fourth quarter, we continued to build good momentum in our core businesses and develop a strong pipeline of new loans.
We have a strong balance sheet.
We're well positioned financially and strategically.
Our agenda for 2021 is clear; advance our strategic plan to further grow and improve performance in all operating areas.
For that, we need to further increase loan generation and grow fee income.
And as I mentioned, we plan to continue to invest for the future to further simplify operations, increase operating leverage, and enhance our ability to serve customers.
Our outlook is more optimistic than last quarter.
We still face challenges from COVID, high unemployment levels, and largely ineffective government operations to name just a few, but we believe the economy is starting to move in the right direction and the future looks brighter.
With the new administration in Washington, Puerto Rico is on the cusp of receiving significant amounts of approved [Technical Issues] reconstruction and stimulus funds for several years to come.
Key areas that should benefit from the influx of federal funds might be production and distribution of resilient and diversified electricity, improved infrastructure, telecommunication, and government efficiency.
We are also very hopeful with regards to the multiple vaccines that have been proven effective against COVID.
I am not talking about their effect on the economy here and around the world, although that's very important, but the effect they will have on human lives and the people in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and elsewhere.
A lot of families, small businesses, and their employees have suffered because of the pandemic.
If the vaccines are as successful as expected, we'll see the end of COVID in a relatively short period of time.
We at OFG are more than ready to help our customers rise up and fulfill their lives again, while we all play a major role in the recovery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Operator, let's start the Q&A.

user
compname reports 4q20 & 2020 results.
q4 earnings per share $0.42.

assistant