BancorpSouth reports higher profit on loan growth, expense control

BancorpSouth in Tupelo, Miss., reported higher quarterly results that included higher revenue tied primarily to loan growth.

The $14.9 billion-asset company said in a press release Wednesday that its first-quarter profit rose 60% from a year earlier to $38.1 million. The results from 2016 included a $13.8 million settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Justice Department.

Net interest income rose 3.1% to $114.6 million. Total loans increased by 3.8% to $10.8 billion, and the net interest margin compressed by 10 basis points to 3.46%. Deposits rose by 4.3% to $12 billion.

Dan Rollins, chief executive of BancorpSouth

The first quarter’s $1 million loan-loss provision was on par with a year earlier. The company had $500,000 in net recoveries and nonperforming assets represented 0.83% of total loans at March 31.

Noninterest income increased 9.5% to $70.9 million. The results benefited from a $900,000 mortgage servicing rights valuation adjustment tied to interest rates. Excluding the adjustment, mortgage revenue fell 17% to $8.1 million, reflecting an 8.6% decline in origination volume.

Noninterest expenses fell 10.1% to $127.1 million. Salaries fell slightly and occupancy expenses were flat.

"We are pleased to see the positive momentum … in our financial performance for the last several quarters,” Dan Rollins, BancorpSouth’s chairman and CEO, said in the release. “While the first quarter is historically seasonally slow for loan growth, we are optimistic about our team's ability to produce quality credits and grow loans.”

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Earnings Deposits Commercial lending Mississippi
MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER