Dickinson Financial in Missouri has no intention of departing from its expansionary mindset as it lays plans for de novo branches and scouts new acquisition opportunities.

Late payments, which have been on a steady rise since 2021, are now climbing at a slower rate or even declining at some major card issuers. Risks remain, but there's 'reason to be cautiously optimistic," one analyst said.

Investors homed in on the benefits of positive economic data for lenders, rather than the possibility of a strong job market delaying interest rate cuts that would help to lower deposit costs and boost credit demand.

This year a California bank takes the No. 1 spot on American Banker's annual list of the best performing community banks.

Though hard times put a dent in profitability, asset quality and net interest margin continued to shine among the list of the best performing publicly traded community banks.