Cardinal State Bank in Durham, N.C., is shopping itself to potential buyers, according to a local news report.
Triangle Business Journal reported Friday that the $189 million-asset Cardinal has hired Orr Group, a Winston-Salem, N.C., investment bank to help identify potential buyers.
Cardinal, founded in 2001, has three branches in Durham, one in Hillsborough, and a commercial loan office in Durham.
According to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data, it earned $960,000 last year, up 30% from 2005. It reported a return on assets of 0.54%, up four basis points from the previous year, and a return on equity of 4.88%, up from 3.95% in 2005.
The bank has also been gaining market share in Durham County. At June 30 it had 4.48% of the county's deposits, up from 3.91% a year earlier.
Analysts told the Business Journal that possible suitors could include the $4.8 billion-asset First Charter Corp. in Charlotte and the $1.4 billion-asset Southern Community Financial Corp. in Winston-Salem.
John Mallard, Cardinal's chief executive officer, said he could not comment on market speculation.
