First Bancshares buying Beach Bancorp in Florida for $116.7 million

The First Bancshares in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, has agreed to pay $116.7 million in stock for Beach Bancorp in a bid to bolster its presence in the Florida panhandle and enter the Tampa metropolitan area.

Beach, based in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, has seven branches across the panhandle and Tampa markets. The $620 million-asset Beach has deposits of $492 million and loans of $456 million.

The $6 billion-asset First Bancshares expects to close the deal by year-end.

“We are thrilled to be joining forces with Beach Bank and continuing to grow our presence in Florida,” Ray Cole Jr., president and CEO of Firs, said in a news release announcing the agreement after markets closed Tuesday. “In addition to strengthening our northwest Florida markets, Beach will add the Tampa metro and central Florida area to our footprint. Both the Florida panhandle and Tampa area offer significant growth opportunities for our bank.”

Cole also trumpeted the deal as an acquisition of key senior talent.

Beach CEO Charles Reeves plans to join the executive leadership team of First, with responsibilities for mortgage banking and specialty lending. He will also oversee the central Florida region, according to the release.

Henry Gonzalez, Beach's Tampa market president, will join First as regional president for Tampa. Chip Falk, senior lender for Beach, will become First Bancshares' senior vice president for specialty lines.

First has completed six acquisitions since 2018, including most recently its buyout of Southwest Georgia Financial in 2020.