Hawthorn Bank inks deal to sell Branson branch

Photo courtesy Hawthorn Bank

Branson Bank is adding its fourth location through the deal.

Jefferson City-based Hawthorn Bancshares Inc. (Nasdaq: HWBK) entered a definitive agreement to sell its sole Branson branch.

Branson Bank is picking up the 4675 Gretna Road branch in a transaction for undisclosed terms, according to a news release.

Through the deal, Branson Bank will take on roughly $15 million in deposits via 900 accounts. The purchase, which doesn’t include loans assigned to the branch, is slated to close in first-quarter 2019.

Hawthorn Bank President David Turner said the company has operated in Branson for 14 years.

“As we focus our network on our other markets, it was vitally important to us that we find a buyer for our southernmost branch who would provide a comparable level of service and the full range of financial products our customers have come to expect,” he said in the release. “We found what we were looking for in Branson Bank.”

The Hawthorn Bank branch would become Branson Bank’s fourth location, adding to two in its home city and one in Forsyth.

Branson Bank operates roughly $210 million in assets, according to the release. Its deposits were $175.2 million as of June 30, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data.

HWBK shares were trading at $23.50 as of 9:08 a.m., compared with a 52-week range of $18.37 to $24.88.