Bear State, BancorpSouth launch share repurchase programs

The boards of Little Rock, Ark.-based Bear State Financial Inc. (Nasdaq: BSF) and Tupelo, Miss.-based BancorpSouth Inc. (NYSE: BXS) recently approved large share repurchase programs.

Bear State
The parent company of Bear State Bank, which in October finalized its acquisition of Springfield’s Metropolitan National Bank, approved the company to buy back 448,068 of its shares.

The board budgeted $3.6 million for the repurchase, or $8.05 per share, according to a news release. BSF shares were trading at $8.18 as of 9:30 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $7.61 to $11.39.

“Bear State Financial was presented an opportunity to purchase a large block of stock at what we believe to be a significant value,” President and CEO Mark McFatridge said in the release. “We took that opportunity without hesitation.

“This purchase demonstrates our confidence in the strength of our business and will benefit our shareholders as we continue to execute our strategic plan.”

The latest authorization adds a third extension to an existing share repurchase program.

In June 2015, the board approved a second extension of $1 million. As of Jan. 28, the company had bought back $1.7 million of its shares under the 2015 repurchase program, according to the release.

Late last month, Bear State reported 2015 net income of $10.6 million, a 56 percent drop compared to profits of $24.3 million in 2014.

BancorpSouth
The BancorpSouth board gave the green light for the company to repurchase 7 million shares through Dec. 29, 2017.

As of 9:33 a.m., BXS shares were trading at $20.40 per share, compared to a 52-week range of $19.20 to $27.23.

The company will factor market conditions when repurchasing stock, including its current price.

The board also voted to terminate a previous stock repurchase program scheduled to expire Nov. 30, 2016. Through it, the company repurchased 2.9 million shares, according to a news release.

In 2015, BancorpSouth boosted its 2015 profits 9 percent to $127.5 million from $116.8 million in 2014.