Windstream trims 54 jobs in Arkansas

Windstream Holdings Inc. laid off 54 employees in Arkansas recently, including 43 in Little Rock, a company spokesman said Friday.

The Little Rock-based firm did not disclose the number of job cuts in other states.

Windstream has been slowly cutting back its workforce. It cut 21 jobs in Arkansas in September, 18 of which were in Little Rock.

The company eliminated 375 positions in the first six months last year, according to a federal filing in August.

"The workforce changes will improve our overall cost structure and enable continued investment in our business," spokesman David Avery said.

Windstream had about 13,000 employees overall, including 1,275 in Arkansas, as of Dec. 31.

Shares of Windstream fell 1 cent Friday to close at $1.72.

-- David Smith

Simmons First OKs 2-for-1 stock split

Simmons First National Corp.'s board has approved a 2-for-1 stock split, the Pine Bluff bank said.

Each Simmons stockholder on Jan. 30 will receive one share of stock for each share owned. The additional shares will be distributed Feb. 8.

The stock split, announced Thursday, should adjust Simmons' stock price to a level that is attractive to a wide range of investors, which should result in an increase in the stock's liquidity and marketability, said George Makris Jr., Simmons' chairman and chief executive officer.

Simmons shares rose 90 cents, or 1.6 percent, to close Friday at $59.15 in trading on the Nasdaq exchange.

Simmons will release its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2017 on Monday about 5 p.m. It will host a conference call for analysts to discuss the earnings report on Tuesday.

-- David Smith

Arkansas Index ends day at record 430.07

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, climbed 4.10 to close at a record high of 430.07 on Friday.

All but two stocks on the index gained ground.

Home BancShares rose 3.8 percent on average volume.

Murphy Oil dropped 1.1 percent in light trading.

For the week, 10 stocks advanced and eight declined.

P.A.M. Transportation was up 4.8 percent for the week.

Windstream fell 6.5 percent for the week.

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

Business on 01/20/2018

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