owned $697.1 million and $705.9 million, respectively, of mortgage-backed securities issued by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, and Ginnie Mae. We did not record a provision for credit losses on investment securities during the three months ended March 31, 2024 or 2023 as all our securities were issued either by U.S. government agencies or U.S. government-sponsored enterprises.
Critical Accounting Policies
There are no material changes to the critical accounting policies disclosed in Territorial Bancorp Inc.’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Comparison of Financial Condition at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023
Assets. At March 31, 2024, our total assets were $2.2 billion, a decrease of $43.6 million, or 2.0%, from December 31, 2023. The decrease in assets was primarily due to a $36.6 million decrease in cash and cash equivalents and an $8.8 million decrease in total investment securities which were partially offset by a $1.1 million increase in total loans.
Cash and Cash Equivalents. Cash and cash equivalents were $90.1 million at March 31, 2024, a decrease of $36.6 million, or 28.9%, since December 31, 2023. The decrease in cash and cash equivalents was primarily caused by a $36.5 million decrease in deposits, as described below.
Loans. Total loans were $1.3 billion at March 31, 2024, or 59.5% of total assets. During the three months ended March 31, 2024, the loan portfolio increased by $1.1 million, or 0.1%. The increase in the loan portfolio primarily occurred as the origination of new loans exceeded principal repayments.
Securities. Total investment securities, including $19.5 million of investment securities available for sale, were $697.1 million at March 31, 2024, or 31.8% of total assets. During the three months ended March 31, 2024, the investment securities portfolio decreased by $8.8 million, or 1.3%. The decrease in the investment securities balance was primarily due to principal repayments. At March 31, 2024, none of the underlying collateral for the securities consisted of subprime or Alt-A (traditionally defined as nonconforming loans having less than full documentation) loans.
Deposits. Deposits were $1.6 billion at March 31, 2024, a decrease of $36.5 million, or 2.2%, since December 31, 2023. The decrease in deposits was primarily due to decreases of $22.0 million in passbook savings accounts, $8.7 million in checking accounts, $5.2 million in certificates of deposit, and $1.1 million in money market accounts. The decrease in deposits occurred primarily as customers sought higher interest rates than what we offer.
Borrowings. Total borrowings were $302.0 million, at March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. Our borrowings consist of advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) and Federal Reserve Bank (FRB) and funds borrowed under securities sold under agreements to repurchase.
Stockholders’ Equity. Total stockholders’ equity was $250.0 million at March 31, 2024, a decrease of $1.1 million, or 0.4%, from $251.1 million at December 31, 2023. The decrease in stockholders’ equity was primarily due to the net loss, an increase in the unrealized loss on available-for-sale securities, and dividends declared.
Average Balance and Yields
The following table sets forth the average balance sheet, yields and rates, and certain other information for the period indicated. No tax-equivalent yield adjustments were made, as we did not hold any tax-free investments. All average balances are daily average balances. Nonaccrual loans were included in the computation of average balances and are included with accrual loans in the tables. However, no interest income was attributed to nonaccrual loans. The yields set forth below include the effect of net deferred costs, discounts, and premiums that are amortized or accreted to interest income of $37,000 and $64,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.