Bank of the Ozarks on Thursday announced first-quarter net income of $113.1 million, up 27 percent from the same quarter last year.
The publicly traded company reported diluted earnings per common share of 88 cents, up from 73 cents in the same quarter last year.
"We are very pleased to report our results for the first quarter of 2018," Chairman and CEO George Gleason said in a news release, "including record net interest income, an annualized return on average assets of 2.16 percent, $941 million growth in the funded balance of non-purchased loans, a 4.69 percent net interest margin and excellent asset quality metrics."
As of March 31, deposits were $17.8 billion, up 13 percent from the same time last year. Total assets were $22 billion, up 15 percent increase from the same time last year.
Quarterly net interest income was a record $217.8 million, up 14 percent from the same time last year. Non-interest income was $28.7 million, down 1 percent from the same time last year.
The bank's efficiency ratio was 37.9 percent compared to 35.0 percent for the first quarter of 2017.
The company also noted that its mortgage lending income declined to $500,000 from $1.6 million in the same quarter last year, the result of its decision last year to exit the secondary market mortgage lending business. The company said it expects "only a nominal amount of mortgage lending income in the second quarter of 2018 and none thereafter."
The company announced in March that it wants to change its name to Bank OZK "as part of a strategic rebranding."
Its annual shareholder meeting is scheduled to take place at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, May 7, at the Capital Hotel at 111 W. Markham St. in downtown Little Rock.
