Simmons First Announces Record 2nd Quarter Earnings

Business Wire, July 17, 2003

Business Editors

PINE BLUFF, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 17, 2003

Simmons First National Corporation (Nasdaq:SFNCA) today announced record second quarter earnings of $6,529,000, or $0.45 diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2003, compared to earnings of $5,705,000, or $0.40 diluted earnings per share for the same period in 2002. This represents an $824,000, or 14.4% increase in the 2003 earnings over 2002. Return on average assets and return on average stockholders' equity for the three-month period ended June 30, 2003, was 1.32% and 12.83%, compared to 1.18% and 12.17%, respectively, for the same period in 2002.

During the second quarter 2003, the Company recorded a nonrecurring $0.03 addition to earnings per share. On June 30, 1998, the Company sold its $1.2 billion residential mortgage-servicing portfolio. As a result of this sale, the Company established a reserve for potential liabilities due to certain representations and warranties made on the sale date. The time period for making claims under the terms of the mortgage servicing sale's representations and warranties expired on June 30, 2003. Thus, the Company reversed this remaining reserve in the second quarter, which is reflected in the $771,000 pre-tax gain on sale of mortgage servicing. Excluding this nonrecurring gain, the Company would have reported $0.42 diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2003.

"With second quarter earnings at a record level even excluding the nonrecurring gain, we are obviously pleased with the results," said J. Thomas May, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The significant increase in earnings over the same quarter last year is primarily attributable to the increased volume of the Company's mortgage banking operation, improved asset quality as reflected in the provision for loan losses and the nonrecurring gain on sale of mortgage servicing."

Earnings for the six months ended June 30, 2003, were $11,861,000, or $0.82 diluted earnings per share. These earnings reflect an 11.4% increase in net income and a 10.8% increase in diluted earnings per share over the same six-month period last year.

As of June 30, 2003, asset quality remained strong with non-performing loans decreasing $2.2 million from the same period last year. Correspondently, non-performing loans to total loans improved to 0.90% from 1.11% from the same period last year, and the allowance for loan losses improved to 191% of non-performing loans, compared to 149% from the same period last year. At quarter end, the allowance for loan losses equaled 1.73% of total loans.

Total assets for the Corporation at June 30, 2003, were $1.989 billion, an increase of $44.5 million over the period ended June 30, 2002. Stockholders' equity at the end of the second quarter of 2003 was $205.1 million, a $16.1 million, or 8.5%, increase from June 30, 2002.

J. Thomas May also noted, "The ticker symbol for Simmons First will change on August 1, 2003 from SFNCA to SFNC to more accurately align our identity on Wall Street with the Company's name and make it more representative of our corporate name."

CONFERENCE CALL

Management will conduct a conference call to review this information at 3:00 p.m. CST (4:00 p.m. EST) on Thursday, July 17, 2003. Interested parties can listen to this call by calling 1-800-854-4175 (United States and Canada only) and ask for the Simmons First National Corporation conference call. A recorded playback of the call will be available the next morning by calling 1-800-642-1687. The passcode for this playback is 1186604 and the recording will be available through the end of business July 24, 2003. In addition, the call will also be available live or in recorded version on the Company's website at www.simmonsfirst.com under the "webcast" icon.

GENERAL

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts should be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements of this type speak only as of the date of this news release. By nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risk and uncertainties. Various factors, including, but not limited to, economic conditions, credit quality, interest rates, loan demand and changes in the assumptions used in making the forward-looking statements, could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Additional information on factors that might affect Simmons First National Corporation's financial results is included in its Form 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Simmons First National Corporation is a financial holding company, with community banks in Pine Bluff, Jonesboro, Lake Village, Rogers, Russellville, Searcy and El Dorado, Arkansas. The Company's seven banks are conducting financial operations from 64 offices, of which 62 are financial centers, in 34 communities.