Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

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That’s why I used the word leakage earlier. I don’t see, sort of wholesale shifts out of deposits. Certainly don’t see, sort of customer loss. It’s really just more, kind of that retail leakage out there across the footprint from a competitive dynamic or alternative opportunity for funds. So, those are some perspectives I have, but Matt, if you’ve got anything or Bob that you’d like to layer in, you got to have some additional comments there?

Matt Reddin: No, Jay, you hit that right on. I think I’d add to that just on the retail linkages, what we’re seeing also alternative opportunities, money markets with a Smith Barney or somebody to that effect, Charles Schwab, but also we’re seeing in the small community markets, rural markets, that is getting very competitive and seeing some really irrational pricing and that’s where we’re also seeing small retail customers kind of leak out customer losses, Jay said, but just real competitive on the time deposits.

David Feaster: Okay. No, I guess, if we €“ how do we think about funding loan growth? And if there are additional pressures, I guess, how do you think about funding that? I mean, it looks like this quarter was primarily CDs, but how do you think about CDs versus borrowings and even potential securities sales? And if you could just remind us of the cash flows off the securities book, that’d be helpful as well?

Jay Brogdon: Yes, on the cash flow piece, David, I think we’re guided to 160 million to 180 million per quarter of principal roll-off. I’ll tell you Q4 that statistic was 185, sort of toward the high-end, slightly above that guide. So, I think that guide, kind of rings through as we go forward in terms of quarterly cash flow, not a lot of appetite to, sort of do a broader balance sheet restructure in right now with the securities portfolio or otherwise. I think we’ve got adequate cash flow, particularly relative to what we expect is moderating again continued loan growth, but moderating loan growth throughout the year. And so, that’s sort of the expectation from funding perspective, you asked a bit about the, sort of alternative funding out there.

To us right now, the most advantageous funding from a cost perspective to the extent we’re relying on wholesale has been in the brokered CD market or brokered market, a little more advantageous rates there than FHLBs or otherwise. We’ve got plenty of capacity there, certainly not our first option. We can fund it off our own balance sheet. That’s what we’ll do. But those are, sort of the relative opportunities and costs that are out there right now.

David Feaster: Okay. And then maybe just circling back to, kind of the loan discussion. Just wanted to touch on the pipeline. It’s still healthy down a bit. Kind of fits with the dynamics that you’ve talked about. But just maybe could you talk to us a bit about the pulse of your markets from a demand perspective? What geographies and segments are you still seeing healthy demand? And what’s your appetite for credit here? Just kind of given the economic backdrop in funding challenges and where do you still see good risk adjusted returns at this point?

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