Simmons First closes on Liberty Bank acquisition

Pine Bluff, Ark.-based Simmons First National Corp. (Nasdaq: SFNC) finalized its purchase of Springfield-based Liberty Bancshares Inc.

The Feb. 27 closing brings an end to the deal announced in May and approved by shareholders from both companies in November, according to a news release.

With the completion of the purchase, Liberty Chairman and CEO Gary Metzger joins Simmons as the company’s regional chairman of Missouri and Kansas.

The transaction, valued at $206.9 million, gives Simmons  $1.1 billion in assets and $881.2 million in deposits from the 19-year-old Liberty. The Federal Reserve Board of Governors approved the deal Feb. 12, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.

On Friday, Simmons also finalized its purchase of Union, Tenn.-based Community First Bancshares Inc. Its president and CEO, John Clark, becomes Simmons’ regional chairman of Tennessee.

Simmons now holds roughly $7.6 billion in assets, $4.7 billion in loans and $6.2 billion in deposits, and it employs over 2,000 people at 160 locations in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Tennessee, according to the release.

"These acquisitions bring together three high-performing organizations with a shared commitment to associates, customers, communities and shareholders," Simmons Chairman and CEO George Makris Jr. said in the release.

Simmons reported 2014 earnings of $35.7 million, a 54 percent improvement over 2013. Simmons entered the local market in May 2010 after purchasing 14-year-old Southwest Community Bank’s $96.6 million in assets, according to SBJ archives.

SNFC shares were trading at $41.94 as of 10:35 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $33.27 to $43.22.[[In-content Ad]]