SouthState third-quarter profit falls to $224 million, margin slips to 3.77%

SouthState Bank Corporation (SSB) reported third-quarter 2026 net income of $224 million, or $2.30 per diluted share, it said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.

Net income was $223.8 million, down from $230.0 million in the prior quarter and $246.6 million a year earlier.

Here's how the company did:

• Diluted EPS: $2.30 vs. $2.42 a year earlier
• Net income: $223.8 million vs. $246.6 million a year earlier
• Net interest income: $591.5 million vs. $599.7 million a year earlier
• Noninterest income: $93.9 million vs. $99.1 million a year earlier
• Noninterest expense: $374.8 million vs. $372.3 million a year earlier

Nine-month net income was $679.6 million, or $6.93 per diluted share, compared with $550.9 million, or $5.41 per diluted share, a year earlier. The prior-year period included securities losses and a gain on a sale leaseback, the filing shows.

Net interest income, the difference between interest earned on loans and securities and interest paid on deposits and borrowings, rose $16 million, or 3%, from the prior quarter to $591.5 million.

Net interest margin was 3.77% on a non-tax equivalent basis, compared with 3.78% in the second quarter and 4.05% a year earlier.

Accretion income, or interest recognized on discounts on acquired loans, was $27 million. That was down $6 million from the prior quarter and $56 million from a year earlier. The company said $159.3 million of discount on acquired loans remained to be accreted as of Sept. 30.

Noninterest income was $93.9 million, compared with $96.7 million in the second quarter and $99.1 million a year earlier.

Noninterest expense rose $17 million from the prior quarter to $374.8 million, primarily because of higher salaries and employee benefits. The efficiency ratio was 52%.

The company attributed the compensation increase to July 1 merit increases, execution of its revenue producer hiring initiative, higher incentive accruals and a reduction in deferred loan costs.

Loans increased $1.2 billion, or 9% on an annualized basis, from the prior quarter, to $52.1 billion.

Compared with a year earlier, loans rose $4.4 billion, or 9%. Deposits rose $1.3 billion from the prior quarter, or 9% annualized, to $57.6 billion, and $3.6 billion, or 7%, from a year earlier.

“The third quarter was marked by strong balance sheet growth and a stable net interest margin,” said Chief Executive Officer John C. Corbett.

“Asset quality remains favorable, and while capital markets activity softened as treasury yields rose, the core franchise continues to perform well,” Corbett said.

Net charge-offs were $12 million, or 0.09% of average loans. The provision for credit losses was $20.3 million, and the allowance for credit losses plus the reserve for unfunded commitments was 1.29% of loans.

Nonperforming assets totaled $310.8 million, or 0.44% of total assets of $70.4 billion.

Book value per share was $93.51. Tangible book value per share was $58.19, up 7% from a year earlier, after the company raised its dividend by 10% and repurchased nearly 5% of its shares over the past year.

The company repurchased 250,000 shares in the quarter at a weighted average price of $104.45.

The preliminary capital ratios included a tangible common equity ratio of 8.4%, a total risk-based capital ratio of 13.5%, a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 9.4% and a Tier 1 common equity ratio of 11.1%.

The board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.66 per share, up 10% from $0.60 in the prior quarter. It is payable Nov. 13 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 6.

The company will host a conference call on Oct. 22 at 9 a.m. Eastern Time, hosted by Chief Financial Officer Will Matthews.

SouthState Bank, N.A., the company's nationally chartered bank subsidiary, serves more than 1.8 million customers in Florida, Texas, the Carolinas, Georgia, Colorado, Alabama, Virginia and Tennessee.