Commerce Bank grows Q1 earnings by nearly 10%

Kansas City-based Commerce Bancshares Inc. (Nasdaq: CBSH) reported first-quarter net income available to common shareholders of $69.3 million, a 9.7 percent increase from $63.1 million a year earlier.

The operator of seven Commerce Bank branches in Springfield posted diluted share earnings of 68 cents for the three-month period ended March 31, a 6-cent uptick from first-quarter 2016, according to a news release.

“This quarter we continued to experience solid loan demand as average loans grew 8 percent annualized, with most of this growth occurring in our commercial lending business,” Commerce Bank Chairman and CEO David Kemper said in the release. “Average deposits also grew $373 million, or 7 percent annualized, this quarter after strong growth in the previous quarter.”

First-quarter financial notes:
    •    Revenue grew 4 percent to $295.3 million.
    •    Net loans were $13.4 billion at the end of the quarter, a 7 percent increase compared with a year earlier.
    •    Salaries and employee benefits were up 5 percent to $112.4 million.

As of March 31, Commerce Bank held $25.3 billion in assets and $21.1 billion in deposits. The company operates 340 branches in Missouri and four other states, according to the release.

CBSH shares were trading at $53.83 as of 10:06 a.m., compared with a 52-week range of $42.44 to $60.61.