Longtime BancorpSouth chairman to retire

The current chairman and former chief executive of Tupelo, Miss.-based BancorpSouth Inc. (NYSE: BXS) plans to retire when his current term ends in April.

Aubrey Patterson retired from the CEO post in November 2012. He served as president and chief operating officer 1983-1990, CEO and president 1990-91, and chairman and CEO 1991-2012. Dan Rollins, who was selected to lead the company as CEO, also will take on the chairman role after Patterson's April 23 retirement, timed with the company's annual shareholder meeting, according to a news release.

“Aubrey’s guidance, wise counsel and efforts to ensure a smooth and seamless transition upon his retirement as CEO, and during his term on the board, have been invaluable to our company and to me personally,” Rollins said in the release.

During Patterson's tenure, BancorpSouth grew to encompass roughly $13 billion in assets and operates 292 commercial banking, mortgage and insurance locations, including six BancorpSouth branches in Springfield.

BXS shares were trading at $24.81 as of 10:45 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $14.72 to $26.24.