Washington Federal, Inc., parent company of Washington Federal Savings, recently announced earnings of $32.5 million or $.41 per diluted share for the quarter ended March 31, compared to $37.7 million or $.49 per diluted share for the same period one year ago, a 13.7 percent decrease. Decreased earnings from the same quarter one year ago were attributable to a slowdown in loan prepayments and a one time pretax gain of $3.4 million on the sale of real estate last year.

Washington Federal’s capital ratio increased to 14.48 percent as of March 3, compared to 13.51 percent at the same time last year. The Company’s efficiency ratio increased slightly to 18.14 percent for the quarter, compared to 17.72 percent for the same quarter last year. The second fiscal quarter produced a return on assets of 1.73 percent, while return on equity amounted to 12.04 percent for the quarter.