Tupelo, Miss.-based BancorpSouth Inc. (NYSE: BXS), the holding company for six BancorpSouth branches in Springfield, reported third-quarter results of 13 cents per diluted share, a 13-cent drop from the same quarter a year ago.
Net income for the quarter ending Sept. 30 was $11.3 million, a 48 percent decrease from third-quarter 2009 results of $21.5 million, or 26 cents per diluted share, according to a company news release.
BancorpSouth CEO Aubrey Patterson attributed the loss to a tough financial climate.
"BancorpSouth's financial results for the third quarter of 2010 continued to reflect a challenging credit environment, with weak loan demand and significant growth in nonperforming loans," Patterson said in the release.
Patterson said the company was prepared for the third-quarter losses.
"We believe that we are appropriately reserved for losses inherent in our loan portfolio," he said in the release. "The decline in earnings for the third quarter of 2010 from the third quarter of 2009 was primarily due to a $32.3 million increase in the provision for credit losses to $54.9 million compared with $22.5 million for the third quarter of 2009."
The third-quarter earnings report also showed:
- Year-to-date loans and leases were at $9.5 billion, compared to $9.8 billion in the previous year.
- Total year-to-date nonperforming assets were $492 million, a 183 percent increase from $173 million at the same time last year.
- Total year-to-date assets were $13.6 billion, compared to $13.3 billion at the same time last year.
BancorpSouth operates approximately 312 commercial banking, mortgage, insurance, trust and broker/dealer locations in Missouri and eight other states, according to the release.
Shares were trading at $13.03 as of 10:20 a.m. today, compared to a 52-week range of $12.41 to $24.75.[[In-content Ad]]
