CapStar Bank has beefed up its commercial finance division with the hiring of experienced account executives in Atlanta and Charlotte. The duo of Larry Hawk and Tebin McDowell have several decades of combined experience. In Georgia, Hawk joins Jim Ward, who came on board earlier this spring.

Cat Financial posted a first-quarter profit of $141 million, up 18 percent from last year, as its total asset base grew 14 percent to more than $35 billion. Before taxes, profits rose 10 percent from a year ago to $187 million. An improvement in asset quality — past dues ended March at about 2.5 percent, down from 3.2 percent a year ago — also helped lift earnings.

Caterpillar Financial Services' net income for the last three months of 2012 clocked in at $99 million, up 4 percent from the year before. Keeping a lid on further gains from more lending and lower expenses was a $17 million jump in the loan loss provision and $12 million of returned or repossessed equipment.

New retail financing in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $3.85 billion, an increase of $840 million, or 28 percent, from the fourth quarter of 2011. The increase was a result of growth across all operating segments, with the largest increases occurring in our North America, Europe and Caterpillar Power Finance and Latin America operating segments.

Caterpillar Financial Services posted a third-quarter profit of $109 million, 5 percent better than during Q2 and 17 percent than a year ago. New financings jumped more than 20 percent while past dues as a percent of total loans fell more than a half point during the quarter.

"[W]e are especially pleased with the continued improvement in the performance of our portfolio," said Kent Adams, Cat Financial president and vice president of Caterpillar Inc. "Past dues and write-offs are down from the third quarter of last year, and the global Cat Financial team remains focused on helping Cat customers and dealers succeed through financial services excellence."

SEE ALSO: A quick look at mothership Caterpillar's Q3 numbers

Caterpillar Financial Services posted a fourth-quarter profit of $90 million, up from $75 million in late 2010, as its asset base crossed the $30 billion mark. Revenues at the West End-based specialty lender rose just 5 percent during the quarter, but that was in line with 2011's trend and didn't stop CEO Kent Adams and his team from growing pre-tax income more than 50 percent. One thing to watch, though: New retail financings grew 'only' 11 percent from late 2010, much less than they had earlier in the year.

Struggling business lender Tennessee Commerce Bancorp on Friday afternoon told investors it has set aside another $29 million to reserve against possible losses in a number of its loan portfolios. The bank's management, led by CEO Mike Sapp and CFO Frank Perez, also is reviewing a forensic review of Tennessee Commerce's small-ticket specialized equipment portfolio that may lead to more write-downs. As a result, auditor KraftCPAs has withdrawn its opinion of the bank's past reported numbers.

Bank execs and state and federal regulators have been taking a fine-tooth comb to Tennessee Commerce's books for several months and this latest round of set-asides — more than $22 million for small-ticket equipment loans, $4 million for conventional commercial and industrial credits and $2.7 million for anticipated real estate losses — comes almost three months after regulators forced Sapp & Co. to take charges of some $90 million to cover potential losses. Since then, state and federal deadlines to raise the bank's capital ratios have come and gone. Officials say they continue to explore all options for doing so. If they're not successful, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. will likely decide the bank's future as receiver or conservator.

Helped almost equally by fewer bad loans and higher yields on new financings, Caterpillar Financial Services posted a $126 million profit in the third quarter, its highest number in more than three years. New retail deals rose 6 percent from a year ago.

"We are very pleased with our third quarter results," said Kent Adams, Cat Financial president and vice president of Caterpillar Inc. "New business, write-offs, past dues and profit all improved from last year, with past dues being at the lowest level since the second quarter of 2008. With our continued focus on managing our portfolio, ensuring an outstanding customer experience, and maintaining access to attractive funding, Cat Financial is well positioned to support Caterpillar customers and dealers around the world."

West End-based Caterpillar Financial Services posted a second-quarter profit of $107 million on revenues of $675 million. It was the first time since the third quarter of 2008 that the bottom line topped $100 million. New financings continued to climb, reaching $2.9 billion, an increase of 18 percent.