Simmons First National Corp. earned $55.6 million in the fourth quarter of last year, almost three times more than the $18.9 million it made in the fourth quarter of 2017, the Pine Bluff bank said Tuesday.
Earnings per share were 60 cents, better than the 22 cents it earned a year earlier but a penny below the 61-cent projection of six analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Simmons shares fell 31 cents to close Tuesday at $26.17 in trading on the Nasdaq exchange. Simmons released its fourth-quarter results Tuesday after the market closed.
"We had a remarkable year," George Makris Jr., chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Last year, Simmons completed two system conversions for the banks acquired in late 2017 and a 2-for-1 stock split, Makris said.
"We also announced yet another acquisition that will be completed this year," Makris said. "Throughout 2018, we experienced excellent [unacquired] growth in all our markets and balanced year-to-date loan yields with deposit costs in a rising-rate environment, all the while sustaining our reputable asset quality."
Simmons had deposits of $12.4 billion and loans of $11.7 billion at the end of the fourth quarter. Those compared with $11.1 billion in deposits and $10.8 billion of loans at the close of 2017.
For the year, Simmons earned record net income of $215.7 million in 2018, compared with $92.9 million for 2017.
The bank's fourth-quarter results give shareholders a number of reasons to be optimistic, said Garland Binns, a Little Rock banking attorney.
"Simmons continues to be a consistent performer in the banking sector," Binns said.
In 2018, Simmons focused on improving its delivery of products and services to its customers throughout its markets, Makris said.
"We will carry this momentum into 2019 as we continue to focus on improving our business processes, expanding our customer relationships and closing our acquisition of Reliance Bancshares," Makris said.
Reliance is based in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
Simmons will host a conference call to review its fourth-quarter and 2018 results today at 9 a.m. Interested parties can listen to the call by dialing (866) 298-7926 and asking for the Simmons First National. The conference identification number is 427-9795.
Simmons has $16.5 billion in assets and branches in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.
Business on 01/23/2019