Last edited 4:04 p.m., June 4, 2013Of the 418 employees eligible to participate in BancorpSouth Inc.'s early retirement program announced last month, 227, or roughly 54 percent, accepted the offer.
Among the participants is Springfield worker
Dave Kunze, BancorpSouth's Missouri division president, who is expected to retire Oct. 1. BancorpSouth spokesman Randy Burchfield said Kunze was one of two employees in the Springfield area eligible for the program, but the only one to accept the offer. Burchfield declined to name the other person.
The Tupelo, Miss.-based bank holding company (NYSE: BXS) anticipates annual savings of roughly $9 million, after paying a one-time charge of $10.9 million related to program expenses, according to a news release.
"We are thankful for the contributions of each and every individual who has chosen to participate. The acceptance rate confirms the confidence management had that the program provided pension enhancements that are reflective of each individual's value and service to our company," BancorpSouth CEO Dan Rollins said in the release.
Program participants were given the choice to receive pension plan enhancements in lump-sum or annuity payments. If lump-sum distributions, including those not related to the program, exceed $16.7 million, the company would incur an additional noncash charge of up to $10 million in 2013 to accelerate the amortization of pension assets. If this acceleration occurs, the company anticipates a pension expense reduction of up to $900,000 per year during the next 11 years, the release said.
During the first quarter ended March 31, BancorpSouth
posted profits of $20.8 million, a 9 percent drop compared to the same quarter in 2012.
BXS shares were trading at $17.34 as of 8:36 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $12.48 to $18.06.[[In-content Ad]]
