LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) _ Bank OZK (OZK) on Thursday reported fourth-quarter profit of $100.8 million.

The Little Rock, Arkansas-based bank said it had earnings of 78 cents per share.

The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 76 cents per share.

The bank posted revenue of $311.4 million in the period. Its revenue net of interest expense was $245.4 million, also topping Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $238.8 million.

For the year, the company reported profit of $425.9 million, or $3.30 per share. Revenue was reported as $991.7 million.

Bank OZK shares have increased 1% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Thursday, shares hit $30.81, a rise of 12% in the last 12 months.

This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on OZK at https://www.zacks.com/ap/OZK

Automated Insights, source Associated Press News