Bank OZK of Little Rock (Nasdaq: OZK) on Thursday reported record second-quarter profit as total loans climbed higher and boosted interest income.
The bank posted net income of $178.9 million, a 3.1% increase from $173.5 million in the second quarter of 2024. Per share, earnings came to $1.58.
The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.51 per share.
The bank posted revenue of $699.6 million in the period. Its revenue net of interest expense was $428 million, also topping Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $417.7 million.
Shares of the company rose about 2% to $51.91 in after-hours trading on Thursday.
Record Loans — Again
Loans grew in the quarter to a record $33.01 billion, an increase of $4.3 billion, or 15.1%, compared to the same quarter a year ago. It was the bank’s 12th consecutive quarterly record for loan balances and its best ever quarter of organic loan growth.
That growth drove interest income to a record $396.7 million, up 2.3% from $387.99 million a year ago.
Bank OZK’s funded balance of real estate loans reached record levels in the quarter, but the company reported progress on its efforts to diversity its loan portfolio. Real estate loans accounted for 60% of total loans for the period ending June 30, down from 62% in the first quarter of 2025 and below the all-time high of 70%.
The bank said much of its growth in the remainder of 2025 and 2026 is expected to come from other lending teams.
Community banking now accounts for 16% of total loans. The bank’s indirect RV & marine segment and its corporate and institutional banking segment each account for 12% of total loans.
The bank’s high exposure to commercial real estate has raised concerns from investors in the past few years. In May, the bank offloaded some of that risk by selling land it seized from a stalled mixed-use development in Chicago. The bank said it would break even on the $83.5 million sale, which is set to close by the end of September.
Expanding Branch Network
Bank OZK opened eight branches in the second quarter, bringing the number of branches opened in the first half of 2025 to 11.
With most of the bank’s deposits generated through retail customers, the new locations helped drive total deposits to a record $33.52 billion, up nearly 8% from $31.04 billion a year ago.
Non-interest expense rose 11.4% in the quarter as the bank grew its physical footprint. The addition of 109 employees pushed pay and benefits to $86.2 million, up 17.44% from $73.41 million a year ago.
Total non-interest expense was $153.2 million, up 11.5%.
The bank expects to open about 15 more branches in the second half of 2025 and another 25 branches in 2026.
Bank OZK currently has more than 250 offices in nine states: Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, New York, California and Mississippi.
The bank finished the second quarter with $41.45 billion in total assets, up 12.5% from $36.84 billion a year ago.
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