Congaree shares fall 80 percent, to $1
01/29/2009
Apparently, shareholders of Congaree Bancshares didn’t take the news of founder and CEO Hank Ray’s departure as a good sign.
On Thursday, just a little more than a full day after Ray’s resignation from the Cayce, SC, bank company became public, Congaree’s stock fell 80 percent, to $1 a share. In fairness to the company, only 200 shares of stock were listed as being traded on Wednesday.
That’s a precipitous decline from the $10 per share investors paid to buy into the company during its inital offering, in 2006.
Congaree State Bank, like most financial institutions, has had a rough go of it in recent months. For the quarter ended Sept. 30, the most recent available, it lost $430,533, compared with $482,990 for the same period in 2007, according to Securities & Exchange Commission filings.
However, it’s not unusual for new banks to post losses during their first couple years of operation.
Earlier this year, the bank received $3.3 million in federal bailout money.
Ray’s last day with the bank was Jan. 21, but the departure wasn’t announced until Tuesday. No reason was given for the change. Ray was replaced on an interim basis by Charlie Lovering.
01/29/2009 at 3:57 pm
Most businesses have a hard time during the first few years. Thank goodness for the internet.
01/30/2009 at 9:03 am
The sneaky, underhanded way this bank went about setting up shop — stepping all over another bank’s goodwill — has come back to them.
If not yet, then perhaps eventually.
If and when SCANA props up this bank, that is simply a poor reflection on SCANA, as well.
In Mab’s humble opinion.
01/30/2009 at 9:33 am
What is this other bank you speak of?
02/04/2009 at 3:47 pm
[...] Bancshares. Less than a week after the Cayce-based parent of Congaree State Bank watched it stock fall 80 percent to $1 a share, on Wednesday it jumped 900 percent, to $10 a [...]