News in brief

Lepanto bank sold to First Community

First Community Bancshares, which owns First Community Bank of Batesville, has agreed to buy Little River Bank of Lepanto, the Batesville bank said Thursday.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

First Community is the 10th-largest bank in the state with $1.1 billion in assets. Little River is the second-smallest bank in the state with $33.3 million in assets.

First Community expects the purchase to be approved by federal and state regulators by the end of the year.

Little River, which was founded in 1919, has one office in Lepanto.

First Community, which was formed in 1997, has 18 offices in six counties in Arkansas and two offices in Missouri. Three of its offices are in Craighead County, which adjoins Poinsett County, where Little River Bank is located.

-- David Smith

USDA backs McLarty rural-business fund

McLarty Capital Partners is introducing a rural-business investment fund that will generate up to $100 million for small-business growth in rural America.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the initiative with McLarty Capital Partners, which was co-founded by Arkansas native Franklin McLarty. This is the fifth rural-business investment company the USDA has helped create since 2014.

"We are pleased to partner with USDA in this innovative public-private partnership to propel and sustain small business growth in rural America," McLarty said in a news release. "With roots in America's heartland, McLarty Capital Partners is committed to ensuring that small and medium sized enterprises have the means necessary to achieve their business goals, and this endeavor only furthers that mission."

McLarty Capital Partners has offices in Little Rock; Washington, D.C.; New York City; and Huntsville, Ala. It was founded in 2012 by McLarty and Christopher Smith to provide financing to small and midsize businesses.

-- Chris Bahn

Index closes down 1.43; 10 issues gain

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, dropped 1.43 to 328.58 on Friday.

Ten stocks advanced and eight declined.

America's Car-Mart gained 2.1 percent in light trading.

Dillard's lost 4.6 percent on heavy volume.

For the week, 14 stocks were up and four fell.

Tyson Foods rose 5.7 percent for the week.

USA Truck fell 11.3 percent for the week.

Total volume for the index on Friday was 17.3 million shares. The average daily volume for the week was 21.6 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 10/15/2016

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