Great Southern Bancorp, Inc.

For Q2 2026, Great Southern Bancorp reported preliminary net income of $15.8 million, or $1.43 per diluted common share, versus $19.8 million, or $1.72 per share, in Q2 2025; first-half 2026 net income was $33.3 million, or $2.99 per share, versus $36.9 million, or $3.18 per share, in the first half of 2025. Net interest income was $49.5 million, down from $51.0 million a year ago, and the annualized net interest margin expanded to 3.76% from 3.68%; noninterest income was $7.4 million versus $8.2 million, and noninterest expense was $38.2 million versus $35.0 million. Excluding one-time branch consolidation and workforce reduction costs, noninterest expense was $36.1 million. On the balance sheet, gross loans receivable were $4.38 billion and net loans decreased $49.1 million for the first six months and $149 million sequentially; total deposits were about $4.3 billion, down $143 million from 3/31/2026. Nonperforming assets were $9.4 million, or 0.17% of total assets, and net charge-offs were $819 thousand, including a $909 thousand charge-off on a multifamily loan. Management did not provide formal numerical revenue or EPS guidance; instead, it said Q4 2026 should begin to reflect approximately $4.4 million to $4.8 million of annualized expense savings from branch consolidations and workforce reductions, partially offset by some customer deposit attrition, for an estimated $2.3 million to $2.7 million in annual pretax income improvement. The tax rate is expected to run around 18% to 19.5% going forward.

Joe Turner said the quarter showed the strength and resilience of the core franchise despite a highly competitive environment. He emphasized relationship-based banking, disciplined underwriting, and careful balance sheet positioning, while stressing that loan and deposit trends are inherently hard to forecast because customers have many options and payoffs can swing materially. He also framed the branch consolidation and staff reductions as part of an ongoing effort to align with customer behavior and improve efficiency as technology evolves.

Rex Copeland highlighted the key financial drivers behind the quarter: NII of $49.5 million, margin of 3.76%, noninterest income of $7.4 million, and noninterest expense of $38.2 million. He broke out $2.1 million of one-time branch and severance costs, including a $1.4 million valuation allowance on four owned locations, $561 thousand of severance, and $163 thousand of lease expense, and said the actions should save about $4.4 million to $4.8 million annually in expense beginning in Q4 2026, translating to $2.3 million to $2.7 million in pretax income improvement. He also noted $642 million of stockholders’ equity, book value of $58.95 per share, $1.23 billion of FHLB availability, $320 million of Federal Reserve availability, and $180 million of cash equivalents.

Analysts focused on whether margin could hold up, whether loan payoffs would slow, and how much of the expense run-rate is truly recurring. Copeland said margin looks more likely to be stable than to keep expanding, with some CD repricing benefit possible but competition still intense; he also said if loan balances keep shrinking, net interest income dollars would likely face pressure even if margin holds. On loans, Turner repeatedly said the pace of payoffs and originations is very difficult to predict, while Copeland added that second-quarter activity had more construction deals that would fund later and that payoffs were somewhat above the recent trend. On capital allocation, management said buybacks still make sense but less than when the stock was lower, and Turner said the board’s most likely options are continued repurchases, a higher quarterly dividend, or special dividends.