Bank of the Ozarks’ stock price dropped about 12 percent today, to $41.74 in a recent trade, on news of the resignation of Dan Thomas as vice chairman and president of the real estate specialties group. Reports by both Reuters and the Motley Fool suggested that the bank’s construction and development loan portfolio might have something to do with events.
Stephens Inc. downgraded the stock from “overweight” to “equal weight” on what an analyst said was concern about the sustainability of growth.
The bank announced Thomas’ departure in a regulatory filing and said his departure should have no material impact on the company. Nonetheless, investors seemed concerned, though at least one analyst said the drop presented a buying opportunity.
Thomas had been at the bank 14 years.
According to Reuters, the real estate group accounted for 70 percent of the bank’s loans, 50 percent of revenue and 61 percent of loan growth the last year. Motley Fool noted that construction/land development loans had grown from $1.5 billion at the end of 2014 to $5.3 billion at the end of 2016.
The article said 36 percent of the bank’s loan portfolio was in such loans, a higher percentage than other regional banks.