Peoples Bancorp to acquire Baylor Bancshares

Peoples Bancorp Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Peoples Bank, recently announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire Baylor Bancshares Inc., a bank holding company, and its subsidiaries, First Bank and Trust and Baylor Mortgage Company Inc., both headquartered in Seymour.

First Bank and Trust had approximately $144 million in assets as of Sept. 30, 2020, and has four branches — in Seymour, Princeton, Whitney and Laguna Park.

Upon completion of the transaction, the combined institution will have approximately $827 million in total assets, $476 million in total loans, $736 million in total deposits and $80 million in total capital. The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter.

“We are excited to welcome First Bank and Trust and its team to the Peoples Bank family,” said Larry Allen, chairman and CEO of Peoples Bank. “We have known Gene and Darrell Adams for many years. We have a tremendous amount of respect for them and have enjoyed getting to know many of the other folks at First Bank and Trust. It’s a great cultural fit, and we look forward to continued outstanding service to our existing customers and to the new customers in the stable, strong community of Seymour, the growing city of Princeton, the recreational destination of Whitney and Laguna Park (near Lake Whitney).”

Peoples Bank has nine locations across West Texas: Lorenzo, Lubbock (three), Nazareth, Post, Seminole, Shallowater and Slaton. A mortgage lending operation is also located in Lubbock.