LITTLE ROCK —

Simmons First National Corporation has announced plans to shut down 26 Simmons Bank branches, as detailed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 1.

The closures will impact locations across six states, including six branches situated in Arkansas.

On Thursday, Simmons Bank’s President and CEO, Jay Brogdon, informed Arkansas Business that the affected branches are in North Little Rock, Pine Bluff, Hot Springs, Fort Smith, and Jonesboro.

According to the SEC filing, the branch closures will likely affect around 100 employees. However, the company expects to retain roughly 70 percent of these associates by relocating them to different branches or other positions within the organization.

The closures are scheduled to take effect on December 4, 2026.

Simmons indicated that this move is aimed at realigning its branch network with changing customer preferences while ensuring continued access and service levels. They also plan to maintain the delivery of advice and financial solutions through other nearby branches and banking channels.

The management at Simmons Bank believes that the closures can occur with minimal disruption to customers, as the affected locations lack significant geographic concentration.

This decision to close branches is part of a broader evaluation of the company’s retail network strategy, aimed at enhancing earnings.

During an earnings conference call on July 16, 2026, Simmons’ management discussed ongoing efforts to improve operational performance and support future growth investments.

As highlighted in the Regulation FD Disclosure from the September 1 SEC filing, management acknowledged a commitment to expense discipline over recent years but sees room for further improvement. They emphasized a shift toward strategic initiatives aimed at transforming the operating model, simplifying structures, and increasing the use of technology.

So far, these initiatives include:

• Redesigning and optimizing the operating model and organizational structure;
• Optimizing the branch network strategy (including the current branch closures);
• Implementing various operational efficiency and expense management enhancements.

In light of the branch closures, Simmons anticipates incurring pre-tax expenses in the range of approximately $20 million to $23 million, breaking down as follows:

• Severance and other personnel termination costs estimated between $0.2 million and $0.5 million;
• Professional services fees anticipated at approximately $3 million to $3.5 million;
• Real estate write-downs and lease termination fees projected to be between $17 million and $19 million.