IberiaBank Shares Plunged: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of regional bank IberiaBank (NAS: IBKC) fell as low as 10% in intraday trading Wednesday after quarterly results disappointed investors.

So what: Driven by one-time expenses associated with a pair of acquisitions, IberiaBank posted a second-quarter profit of $5 million, or $0.18 per share, down 45% from its $0.33 per share profit in the year-ago period. Although Wall Street isn't pleased with the results, IberiaBank CEO Daryl Byrd said that the most recent quarter "was a period of strong acquisition and organic growth. Our credit fundamentals and capital strength remain among the best in the industry."

Now what: I'd look into this plunge as a possible buying opportunity. IberiaBank -- which sidestepped much of the subprime mess -- remains one of the more conservative banks in the space and is sporting a solid dividend yield of more than 2%. Given that the second-quarter profit drop was driven largely by one-time charges, Mr. Market seems to be overreacting.

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At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributorBrian Pacamparaowns no position in any of the companies mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days.We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool'sdisclosure policyalways gets a perfect score.

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