Simmons First sees quarterly income decline

by The City Wire staff ([email protected]) 81 views 

Simmons First National Corp. reported second quarter net income of $6.5 million, slightly below the $6.7 million it earned one year ago.

“We continue to benefit significantly from strong asset quality, which has resulted in a reduction in our provision for loan losses, and from our on-going efficiency initiatives that resulted in a decrease in our non-interest expense,” said J. Thomas May, chairman and CEO.

Total loans for the Pine Bluff-based bank, including those covered by FDIC loss share agreements, were $1.7 billion at June 30, 2012, a decrease of $98 million compared to the same period in 2011.

“The majority of this decrease is related to a $79 million decrease in FDIC covered loans and a $14 million decrease in our student loan portfolio, both of which were expected,” May said.

Legacy loans, excluding FDIC-covered loans, increased $71 million from the previous quarter end.

“Of this increase, $54 million relates to the seasonality in our agricultural and credit card portfolios. Our student loan and consumer portfolios decreased a combined $7 million and our real estate portfolio increased $27 million. We saw growth in our construction, commercial real estate and single family loans,” May added.

Other financial highlights for Simmons First include:
At June 30, 2012, total deposits were $2.6 billion, an increase of $22 million, or 0.9%, compared to the same period in 2011.

Net interest income for the second quarter of 2012 was $27.3 million, unchanged from the same period of 2011.

Non-interest income for the second quarter was $11.1 million, compared to $14.3 million for the second quarter of 2011.

Simmons First stock closed trading on Wednesday at $23.47 a share. The company’s stock has traded between a low of $18.71 per share and $28.54 per share during the past year.