Arkansas, Kentucky Top District Ranking of 4Q Interest Margin

In the fourth quarter of 2012, Arkansas banks collectively had a net interest margin of 4.19 percent, down from 4.31 percent in the same quarter of 2011.

Arkansas and Kentucky ranked as the top performers in the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank’s Eighth District, which includes all of Arkansas and parts of six other states, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Net interest margin is total interest income less total interest expense as a percent of average earning assets.

As of Dec. 31, Little Rock-based Bank of the Ozarks had a net interest margin of 5.77 percent; United Bank of Springdale had a ratio of 4.01 percent; Metropolitan National Bank of Little Rock had a ratio of 3.77 percent; and First Federal Bank of Harrison had a ratio of 3.45 percent.

The collective margin for the Eighth District in the fourth quarter was 3.9 percent, 0.29 percent lower than the Arkansas average.