Dive Brief:
- Asheville, North Carolina-based HomeTrust Bancshares, the holding company of HomeTrust Bank, has agreed to acquire Blue Ridge Bankshares, the holding company of Blue Ridge Bank, for $448.1 million in stock, the companies said Monday.
- Acquiring Richmond, Virginia-based Blue Ridge expands HomeTrust’s footprint in Virginia and pushes the lender to $7 billion in assets, according to a news release. The combined company will have about 60 locations across the Southeast.
- The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027.
Dive Insight:
HomeTrust, which has about $4.4 billion in assets, has 30 locations across North Carolina, South Carolina, eastern Tennessee, southwestern Virginia and Georgia.
“This represents a compelling opportunity to further expand our presence in the attractive Virginia market and accelerate our growth strategy,” said C. Hunter Westbrook, HomeTrust’s CEO and president, in the news release. “Blue Ridge brings a strong deposit franchise, a growing commercial loan portfolio, and deep local relationships that complement our existing footprint and capabilities.”
The merger will create “a more profitable, resilient, and relevant regional commercial bank, with top quartile earnings and continued recognition as an employer of choice,” Westbrook said.
Under the deal’s terms, Blue Ridge shareholders will receive 0.086 of a share of HomeTrust stock for each Blue Ridge share they own. The deal’s $448.1 million value is based on HomeTrust's five-day, volume-weighted average price of about $49.82 per share from Friday.
The transaction is expected to be about 30% accretive to earnings per share, assuming anticipated cost savings are achieved in 2028, HomeTrust said. Dilution to tangible book value per share is estimated at about 8.3% once the deal closes, with an earnback period of about 3.25 years.
Blue Ridge’s interim president and CEO, Harry Golliday, said the lender “has successfully completed a clean-up of legacy challenges and repositioned itself for profitability and growth.”
“HomeTrust's own transformation from a legacy thrift into a high-performing commercial bank provides a proven roadmap, product suite and talent base to accelerate Blue Ridge's next chapter of success,” Golliday said.
Editor’s note: This story will be updated.
