BancorpSouth reports double-digit income growth

Net income was $36.3 million, up from $23.9 million in third-quarter 2006.

Earnings per diluted share were 44 cents, compared to 30 cents a year ago.

Noninterest revenue increased 17.6 percent to $57.9 million, from $49.2 million in third-quarter 2006. Net interest revenue grew 18.7 percent to $208 million, compared to $175.2 million in the same period last year.

Assets as of Sept. 30 were up 10.6 percent to $13.1 billion, and deposits were up 7.4 percent to $10.2 billion.

“BancorpSouth produced significant profitable growth for the third quarter of 2007, driven by the double-digit rate of expansion of both our traditional banking business and other noninterest revenue,” CEO and Chairman Aubrey Patterson said in a news release. “We again achieved solid organic growth in loans and in insurance commission revenue, even as demand softened relative to the second quarter in both our regional markets and nationally.”

The Mississippi-based bank purchased Springfield-based The Signature Bank earlier this year, and six Springfield branches adopted the larger bank’s moniker in July.

BancorpSouth shares (NYSE: BXS) closed Tuesday at $23.54 and were trading at $23.37 as of 11 a.m. The 52-week range is $21.75 to $27.56.