Simmons First Shareholders Recap Year Of Transition

A new CEO, two bank acquisitions, and the establishment of a community foundation highlighted a year of transition for shareholders of Pine Bluff-based Simmons First National Corp.

The holding company for Simmons Bank held its annual shareholders’ meeting in Pine Bluff on Tuesday night at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.

New CEO George Makris recapped the bank’s past 12 months of business, which included:

• His installation as CEO, taking over for long-time CEO J. Thomas “Tommy” May who retired on Dec. 31, 2013;
• The $53.6 million acquisition of Metropolitan National Bank;
• The $66 million acquisition of Delta Trust and Bank;
• Consolidating its seven bank charters into one; and
• The first two community grants given by a newly established Simmons First Foundation.

The foundation, spearheaded by former CEO Tommy May, gave its first “Make A Difference” grant to the Jefferson County Juvenile Division Circuit Court, which will use the $25,000 to provide family counseling for its programming. The second grant recipient was the Boys & Girls Club of Jefferson County. The $22,910 will be utilized for leadership training.

Other shareholder business included re-election of members to the bank’s board, which it reduced from eleven to nine members, and re-affirming Baird, Kurtz and Dobson (BKD) as its independent auditing firm.

As Makris has indicated in a recent Talk Business interview, Simmons First is continuing to look at growth opportunities, which he said included a number of options within a 350-mile radius of central Arkansas. He emphasized that markets in Missouri and Kansas were prime areas for consideration.

Simmons First has largely completed its integration of its buyout of Metropolitan National Bank, including transitioning the signage of the newly named Simmons Tower building – the tallest building in downtown Little Rock.

Shares of Simmons First National Corp. (NASDAQ: SFNC) closed trading on Tuesday at $35.91. The bank’s stock has traded between $23.53 and $39.05 per share during the past year.