Mississippi

Hancock Holding Co. in Gulfport, Miss., reported late Tuesday that its net income increased nearly 28% in the fourth quarter from a year earlier.

Analysts predict there will be more deals like Hancock's takeover of Whitney as banks seek buyers to help cut ties with Treasury rather than test the highly dilutive capital markets.

Hancock, of Gulfport, Miss., is buying the larger New Orleans-based Whitney. Hancock would gain an entree into Texas and Louisiana and a bigger presence in Florida and Mississippi.

Despite its pending sale, Cadence Financial Corp. in Starkville, Miss., has been ordered to submit a capital plan to the Federal Reserve Board.

Third-quarter net income at Trustmark Corp. in Jackson, Miss., rose 1.4% year over year, to nearly $25.9 million. The $9.4 billion-asset Trustmark had aggressively reduced problem loans, resulting in higher chargeoffs yet a lower loan-loss provision.

Renasant Corp. in Tupelo, Miss., reported that its third-quarter net income rose more than 363% from a year earlier, largely because of a huge gain on the purchase of a failed bank.

Like many community banks, First Bancshares in Mississippi quite reluctantly took Tarp funds, accepting only half what it qualified for. Yet the $500 million-asset company is now going back for seconds.

Mississippi's Cadence Financial Corp. and Trustmark Corp. seemed to be a near-perfect match. Both had competed in neighboring markets for more than a century, and their union would have created an $11 billion-asset Southeast powerhouse.

Cadence Financial Corp. of Starkville, Miss., on Wednesday called off its deal with longtime competitor Trustmark Corp. and instead agreed to be acquired by an investment group in Texas.

The Federal Reserve has ordered First Heritage Corp. in Carthage, Miss., to step up its role as a source of strength for its bank unit.

With problem real estate loans drying up earnings and diminishing capital at Cadence Financial, Trustmark is stepping in to rescue its longtime Mississippi rival.

Recent lawsuits could stop community banks in at least two states from deliberately processing the largest transactions first — a method that triggers additional overdrafts and thus higher fees — after a California judge ruled against Wells Fargo & Co. last month.

The Federal Reserve issued enforcement actions Tuesday against the bank holding companies First Security Group Inc. and Butte State Co.

First National Bank of Omaha is offering a rewards program from Cardlytics that lets customers access merchant offers through First National's FNBO Direct online banking service.

Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. has agreed to acquire American National Bank of Fremont, the Nebraska companies announced Tuesday.

WASHINGTON — Federal and state regulators shut seven banks late Friday, pushing the failure total this year to 103. Though the pace of failures briefly slowed earlier this month, it appears to be picking up momentum again, as Friday's failures followed six last week.

Mississippi's slower-paced banks have fared far better than their higher-flying Southeastern cousins. Yet the tortoise-beats-the-hare story may be spoiled if the oil spill leaks into the state's economy.

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators shut three more banks on Friday, including $2.8 billion-asset TierOne Bank of Lincoln, Neb., a struggling 103 year-old thrift.

The stock of the embattled TierOne Corp. in Lincoln, Neb., has been delisted from the Nasdaq stock market and is now trading over the counter.

Regulators have dealt another setback to TierOne Corp. in Lincoln, Neb., by rejecting the company's proposal to sell half its branches to Great Western Bank.