Great Southern Bancorp, Inc.

I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, Jeff Trika, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Thank you. Good afternoon, and thank you for joining Great Southern Bancorp's first quarter 2025 earnings call. Today we will be discussing the company's results for the quarter ending March 31st, 2025. Before we begin, I'd like to remind everyone that during this call, forward-looking statements may be made regarding the company's future events and financial performance. These statements are subject to various factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected. For a list of these factors, please refer to the forward-looking statements disclosures in the first quarter earnings release and other public filings. Joining me today are President and CEO Joe Turner and Chief Financial Officer Rex Copeland. I'll now turn the call over to Joe.

Okay, thanks Jeff and good afternoon. I also would like to welcome all of you and thank you for joining us on our call today. Our first quarter results reflect the strength of our core banking franchise and the continued resilience of our earnings in a dynamic operating environment amid ongoing economic and financial sector challenges. We reported net income of $17.2 million or $1.47 per diluted common share up from $13.4 million or $1.13 per share in the same quarter a year ago. The improvement in net income this quarter compared to the year-ago quarter was primarily driven by higher debt interest income reflecting stronger loan and investment yields and lower funding costs. Additionally, we recorded a negative provision for credit losses of $348,000 this quarter compared to a provision of $630,000 in the year-ago quarter. This reflects the continued credit strength across our portfolio. Our disciplined approach to expense management and our commitment to maintaining a stable, diversified deposit base have further reinforced our financial foundation. Together, these results underscore the strength and resilience of our business model, positioning us well to continue delivering long-term value for our shareholders. Net interest income totaled $49.3 million in the first quarter of 25 compared to $44.8 million in the first quarter of 24, which was an increase of about 10%. Our net interest margin on a percentage basis remained solid at 357, 25 basis points higher than our year-ago quarter. We continue to operate with a conservative credit posture and a focus on long-term relationship banking. which has enabled us to maintain margin stability despite ongoing deposit cost pressures and a more measured pace of growth. In terms of lending, our loan portfolio remained essentially flat. It was at 4.76 billion at the end of the year and roughly flat here, up 2.2% from where we were at the end of the first quarter of 24. Within our portfolio, the largest categories continue to be multifamily at $1.59 billion and commercial real estate at $1.49 billion. We've also remained focused on construction lending, which totals $475 million at the end of the first quarter. Outstanding construction loan balances may fluctuate quarter to quarter as projects move through various stages of the completion process. Importantly, we continue to maintain a healthy pipeline of unfunded balances on construction loans, reflecting our continued presence in this segment. On the funding side, deposits increased 3.3% from the end of 24 to 4.76 billion with increases in brokerage, as well as inflows in our core checking balances. While some shifts from non-interest bearing to interest bearing accounts have occurred, we've effectively managed total deposit costs while maintaining customer retention. Our balances of broker deposits fluctuate depending on our funding needs and the management of funding mix between core deposits, broker deposits, and other wholesale funds based upon the relative interest rates and desired duration of funds. From a credit quality standpoint, our metrics remain very strong. Non-performing assets remain minimal, consistent with prior quarters, and net charge-offs were negligible in the first quarter of 25. We did not record a provision for credit losses on outstanding loans representing an improvement of $500,000 from the first quarter of 24. Additionally, the company also recognized a negative provision for losses on unfunded commitments of $348,000 in the first quarter compared to provision expense of $130,000 in the first quarter of 24. As we continue to drive operational efficiency, expense management remains a top priority. Non-interest expenses were essentially flat in the first quarter year over year at $34.8 million despite our investments this quarter in technology, infrastructure, and personnel. We also saw a reduction of legal and professional expenses that were elevated last year as we were supporting our core conversion efforts. We continue to maintain a favorable efficiency ratio reflecting our disciplined approach to cost control. As 2025 progresses, we remain focused on execution, protecting margin, proactively managing credit, supporting relationship-based loan growth, and investing strategically in our people, systems, and communities. Despite some economic and market uncertainty, our balance sheet and capital levels are strong, and our team is committed to delivering value through all parts of the cycle. Let me now turn the call over to Rex for a detailed discussion of the financials.