Bear State reports $2.9 million loss

Bear State Financial lost $2.9 million or 13 cents a share in the second quarter, the Harrison banking firm said Thursday.

The bank earned $84,000 in the same period last year.

Much of the loss was attributed to a decision that Bear State, formerly known as First Federal Bancshares, made to retire some of its pension liabilities.

Some of the loss also was attributed to merger-related expenses associated with the purchases of First National Bank in Hot Springs and Heritage Bank in Jonesboro. Those purchases closed June 13.

Bear State Financial's three banks: First Federal Bank, First National Bank and Heritage Bank have a total of 44 branches in Arkansas.

The acquisitions tripled Bear State's assets to about $1.4 billion.

-- David Smith

Sam's Club president to lead NWA council

Rosalind Brewer, president and chief executive officer of Sam's Club, was named presiding co-chairman of the Northwest Arkansas Council for 2014-15 at the council's annual meeting Wednesday at the 21c Museum Hotel in Bentonville. Brewer will lead the council in its business over the next year, though the council has a staff that handles operations on a day-to-day basis.

Brewer took over the position of presiding co-chairman from Mark Simmons, chairman of Simmons Foods in Siloam Springs, and will be followed in coming years by Jim Walton, chairman and CEO of Arvest Bank Group Inc., and Donnie Smith, CEO of Tyson Foods Inc.

Earlier this year, Brewer was recognized by Forbes magazine as one of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women. She joined Wal-Mart in 2006 as a regional vice president after 22 years with Kimberly-Clark. She took the reins of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Sam's Club division in 2012.

The council, established in 1990, is a private, nonprofit organization committed to sustaining and improving the quality of life in Northwest Arkansas.

-- Cyd King

Arkansas Index falls 0.49 on split trading

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, dropped 0.49 to 347.78 Thursday.

"U.S. stocks trudged higher, shrugging off a larger-than-expected jump in [jobless] claims and lowered earnings guidance from Wal-Mart," said John Blackwell, senior vice president and managing director of equity trading at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock. "The Arkansas Index moved lower as 10 stocks declined and seven advanced."

Bear State Financial lost 5.3 percent on above-average volume.

USA Truck fell 2 percent in light trading.

P.A.M. Transportation Services dropped 1.7 percent on thin volume.

Total volume of the index was 17.7 million shares.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

Business on 08/15/2014