White River Bancshares Co. (OTCQX: WRIV) of Fayetteville reported record quarterly income of $1.85 million for the three-month period ending June 30.
Profit more than doubled from the same quarter a year ago, when the holding company for Signature Bank of Arkansas reported net income of $779,000.
Per share, second-quarter earnings came to $1.61.
CEO Gary Head attributed the increase, in part, to rising net interest margin, which was 3.25% in the period compared to 2.97% a year ago.
The company completed a $12.6 million private placement of common shares during the quarter, raising capital that will be used support the bank’s growth plans.
During the quarter, the company opened its second Banco Sí location in downtown Springdale. The first opened in 2022 in downtown Rogers as part of a broader expansion that also brought Signature Bank locations to Harrison and Jonesboro.
“Overall, we operate in one of the most attractive markets in America, and we’re poised for success over the next several years, with the right leadership team, infrastructure and technology in place to optimize our operations,” Head said in a statement.
Loans in the quarter totaled $982.3 million, up 13.8% from $863.5 million a year ago. “We are encouraged by the loan demand in our markets and expect it to continue through the remainder of 2024,” Scott Sandlin, the bank’s chief strategy officer, said in a statement.
White River Bancshares continued setting aside money to cover bad loans. Its allowance for credit losses in the second quarter was $12.43 million, up 17.2% from $10.61 million a year ago.
The bank ended the second quarter with $1.014 billion in deposits, up 14.2% from $888.2 million a year ago. Customers continued to pursue high yields, as savings and interest-bearing transaction accounts increased 10.9% year-over-year. That pushed the bank’s total interest expense up to $8 million from $5.1 million in the second quarter of 2023.
Demand on non-interest bearing accounts fell by 4.2%, but Sandlin said the bank sees “significant opportunities” for growing those deposits as it attracts new customers.
Total assets increased 14.9% to $1.211 billion, up from $1.054 billion a year ago.
White River Bancshares currently operates 10 banks in the state.
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