FMSB First Mutual Bancshares (MM)

First Mutual Bancshares, Inc. (Nasdaq:FMSB) announced today its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.09 per share. The dividend is payable on July 6, 2005 to shareholders of record June 15, 2005. Last week, First Mutual reported its 50th consecutive quarter of year-over-year earnings growth. First quarter 2005 net income was up 12% over the first quarter of last year to $2.6 million, or $0.47 per diluted share. First Mutual's consistent performance has garnered attention from a number of sources. In 2004, the company was ranked #23 in the Top 200 Publicly Traded Banks with less than $1 billion in assets by U.S. Banker magazine, based on its three-year ROE. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods named First Mutual to its Honor Roll for the company's 10-year earnings per share growth rate, and Sandler O'Neill's 2004 Bank and Thrift Sm-All Stars named First Mutual among the top 30 performing small banks in the country, among the 592 with market capitalizations below $2 billion. In May, First Mutual Bank was named Eastside Business of the Year in the 2004 Eastside Business Awards, sponsored by the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce. First Mutual Bancshares, Inc. is the holding company for its wholly owned subsidiary, First Mutual Bank, an independent, community-based bank that operates 12 full-service banking centers in the Puget Sound area, and loan production offices in Tacoma and Vancouver, Washington, and a sales finance office in Jacksonville, Florida. www.firstmutual.com