Simmons First posts $6.4M profits

Pine Bluff, Ark.-based Simmons First National Corp. (Nasdaq: SFNC) reported first-quarter profits of $6.36 million, a 25.4 percent increase compared to earnings of $5.07 million in first-quarter 2011.

The holding company, which operates its sole Missouri Simmons First National Bank branch in Springfield at 3333 E. Battlefield Road, posted earnings per diluted share of 37 cents, an 8-cent increase from the prior quarter, according to a news release.

Simmons First Chairman and CEO J. Thomas May credited the company's provision for loan losses, which dropped 71 percent to $771,000; ongoing efficiency initiatives; and noninterest expense, which fell 4.4 percent to $28.6 million.

"This decrease in noninterest expense is primarily the result of the implementation of our efficiency initiatives," May said in the release. "Since 2008, we have focused our efforts in standardizing certain back office functions and eliminating other duplications, and we have done so with it being transparent to our customers.

"This is especially important during the lull of the economy and as we prepare for future acquisitions, both Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and traditional."

Total loans were down 8.5 percent to $1.7 billion as of March 31, while loans covered by FDIC loss-share agreements were $130 million, down $79 million from the same period in 2011.

"Concerning our loss-share portfolio, the decrease results from the planned liquidation of the guaranteed problem assets acquired from the FDIC," May said in the release. "Additionally, like the rest of the financial industry in Arkansas, we continue to experience soft loan demand as a result of the overall general economic environment."

As of March 31, Simmons First's assets were $3.3 billion, up 1.6 percent compared to the same time last year.

The company's shares were trading at $24.82 as of 9:52 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $18.71 to $28.54.

[[In-content Ad]]