Centennial Bank parent company sees income dip 2.3%, revenue rise 8.7%

Conway-based Home BancShares posted first quarter net income of $71.35 million, down 2.3%, from the $73.064 million in the same quarter of 2018. The per share earnings of 42 cents matched the consensus estimate.

Home BancShares is the parent company of Centennial Bank and has 77 branches in Arkansas, five branches in Alabama, 76 branches in Florida, and one branch in New York City.

Total revenue during the quarter was $203.159 million, well ahead of the $186.781 million posted in the first quarter of 2018.

“Considering all the noise in the market the last two quarters, we are proud to maintain our net interest margin at 4.30% and to meet the earnings per share target of $0.42,” John Allison, Home BancShares chairman, said in the report published Thursday (April 18) before the markets opened. “We think stability and good asset quality are important and outweigh the need for fast growth.”

The company’s return on assets (ROA), a key measure in the banking industry, was 1.92% in the quarter, down from 2.08% in the first quarter of 2018.

Following are other items in the first quarter report.
• Total assets were $15.179 billion at the end of the first quarter, up almost 6% compared to the $14.323 billion in total assets at the end of the first quarter of 2018.

• Total deposits were $11.067 billion at the end of the quarter, up from $10.396 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2018.

• Allowance for loan losses at the end of the quarter was $106.357 million, or 0.97% of all loans. The allowance is down from the $110.212 million at the end of the first quarter of 2018.

• Total non-interest expense – primarily salaries, benefits, rent – at the end of the quarter totaled $69.057 million, up from $63.38 million at the end of the 2018 first quarter.

Home BancShares in 2018 completed its $400 million cash-and-stock deal to acquire Shore Premier Finance, a high-end East Coast financier of sail and power boats that is now a new division within Centennial Bank. Net income for 2018 was $300.4 million, more than double the $135.083 million in 2017.

Shares of the holding company (NASDAQ: HOMB) closed Wednesday at $18.95, but were trading above $19.25 in late Thursday morning trading. The share price has ranged in the past 52 weeks between $24.56 and $15.35.