Bank of the Ozarks tops magazine's list
Little Rock-based Bank of the Ozarks Inc. ranked first among midsize banks with assets between $5 billion and $50 billion in a scorecard of publicly traded banks compiled by Bank Director magazine.
Bank Director, an industry trade publication, issues an annual bank performance scorecard for the nation's 300 largest publicly traded banks that looks at each financial institution's profitability, capitalization and asset quality in calendar year 2014. It divides the banks into three categories: big banks, or those with more than $50 billion in assets; midsize banks with between $5 billion and $50 billion in assets; and community banks with between $1 billion and $5 billion in assets.
Magazine Editor Jack Milligan wrote that Bank of the Ozarks grew its nonpurchased loans and leases by 51 percent, which contributed to its strong profitability ranking. It topped the community bank category in 2013 and 2014.
Conway-based Home BancShares Inc., ranked ninth among midsize banks, while Bear State Financial Inc. of Little Rock ranked 13th among community banks.
-- Glen Chase
NLR chamber taking nominees for awards
The deadline for nominating businesses for the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce's 2015 Business Partner & Non-Profit Partner awards is at the end of August.
Application materials must be received by Aug. 31 at 5 p.m.
Award winners will be honored at a banquet in December and another one in early 2016.
Nominees must have been in business for at least three years, be a North Little Rock chamber member in good standing and actively participate in chamber events.
Past business recipient winners include Mainstream Technologies and Union Pacific Corp.
Nonprofit award winners include William F. Laman Public Library, Habitat for Humanity of Pulaski County and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arkansas.
-- Claire Williams
State index up 1.57 in 'choppy' trading
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, rose 1.57 to 354.59 Thursday.
"U.S. stocks ended mixed in a choppy trading session after data showed the economy picked up pace in the second quarter, leaving the Federal Reserve on track for a September rate hike," said John Blackwell, senior vice president and managing director of equity trading at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock.
Shares of Murphy Oil rose 2.2 percent on double its average volume.
Dillard's climbed 1.6 percent in light trading.
Total volume of the index was 19.3 million shares.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 07/31/2015