Ames National Corporation (ATLO): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

What drives a regional bank holding company like Ames National Corporation (ATLO) to deliver a 109% jump in quarterly net income? This Iowa-based multi-bank holding company, which operates with total assets of approximately $2.108 billion as of late 2025, is a crucial player in central Iowa's financial landscape, ranking as the sixth largest commercial bank holding company in the state by deposits. You need to understand how their core mission-Customer Focused, Locally Empowered, and Team Member Driven-translates into a Q3 2025 net interest margin of 2.83%, a significant improvement from the prior year, and what that means for their projected 2025 Earnings Per Share range of $1.72 to $1.82.

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) History

Understanding Ames National Corporation (ATLO) requires separating its deep banking roots from its modern corporate structure. The company's foundation is over a century old, but the holding company you analyze today is a product of a strategic reorganization designed to facilitate growth and consolidation across central Iowa.

Given Company's Founding Timeline

Year established

The corporate entity, Ames National Corporation, was formally established in 1975. However, its operational history is much longer, tracing back to 1903 with the founding of its oldest affiliate, First National Bank, Ames, Iowa.

Original location

The company has always maintained its headquarters and operational center in Ames, Iowa.

Founding team members

Ames National Corporation was not started by an external entrepreneurial team; it was a strategic evolution. The holding company was formed by the existing leadership of the affiliated banks at the time to consolidate ownership and strategy.

Initial capital/funding

The 1975 formation involved a share exchange, where the shareholders of the affiliated banks exchanged their bank stock for shares in the newly formed holding company. The initial capitalization represented the combined equity of the established banking institutions involved.

Given Company's Evolution Milestones

Given Company's Transformative Moments

The most defintely transformative moment was the 1975 shift to a multi-bank holding company (BHC) structure. This move allowed the company to keep the community-focused, local decision-making of its affiliate banks while gaining the financial and strategic benefits of a larger organization.

This BHC model is crucial because it lets each of the six affiliate banks operate independently with their own boards and presidents, tailoring services to local needs-a key competitive advantage in community banking. The parent company, Ames National Corporation, provides leadership and capital support.

Near-term, the company's operational efficiency has seen a significant improvement, which is a major internal transformation. For the first half of 2025, the cost-to-income (C/I) ratio-a measure of efficiency-improved to about 64%, a strong positive change from the 78.78% reported in the first half of 2024. This improvement came from higher asset yields and stable operating costs.

• Strategic Consolidation: A consistent, decades-long strategy of acquiring and affiliating with local banks, like the 2019 acquisition of Iowa State Savings Bank, has cemented its position in central Iowa.
• Capital Strength: As of June 30, 2025, the Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio stood at 13.9%, which is well above the regulatory requirement of 8.5%, showing strong capital retention and stability.
• Q3 2025 Performance: The company reported total assets of $2.108 billion as of October 31, 2025, with stockholders' equity at $200.6 million, reflecting a strengthening balance sheet driven by retained earnings and improved unrealized losses on its investment portfolio.

You can see the long-term strategic focus in their stated goals: Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Ames National Corporation (ATLO).

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Ownership Structure

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) is a publicly traded multi-bank holding company, meaning its ownership is distributed among a diverse group of shareholders who buy and sell stock on the open market.

As of November 2025, the company has a market capitalization (market cap) of approximately $189.58 million, trading on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker symbol ATLO. This structure is typical for a regional bank holding company, balancing the influence of institutional money with significant retail and insider holdings.

Ames National Corporation's Current Status

Ames National Corporation is a public company, listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market. This public status mandates strict reporting requirements with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), providing investors with transparent financial and operational data.

The company operates as a holding company for six central Iowa banks, including First National Bank and Boone Bank & Trust Co., and had total assets of over $2.1 billion as of December 31, 2024. That asset base makes it the sixth-largest Iowa-based commercial bank holding company by total deposits, so it's a significant regional player.

Ames National Corporation's Ownership Breakdown

The shareholder base is a mix of institutional, retail, and insider interests. The significant insider and retail ownership means that management and local investors defintely hold substantial sway over strategic decisions, which is common for community-focused financial institutions.

For those looking to dive deeper into who is buying and selling, you can find more analysis here: Exploring Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Ames National Corporation's Leadership

The company is steered by a seasoned executive team with deep roots in the Iowa banking sector, providing stability and local market knowledge. The average tenure of the management team is around six years, which is a good sign of consistent leadership.

The key executive leaders as of November 2025 include:

• John P. Nelson: President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He has been a director since 2013 and was appointed President and CEO in 2018, providing long-term strategic continuity.
• Justin Clausen: Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Appointed in 2024, he brings over 14 years of experience in financial services and public accounting.
• Michael A. Wilson: Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer. He joined in 2022 and was promoted in 2023, overseeing the company's crucial lending operations.
• Timothy J. Lupardus: Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, managing the technology and digital strategy for the multi-bank system.

The Board of Directors further provides oversight, consisting of two executive members and nine non-executive members, ensuring independent governance.

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Mission and Values

Ames National Corporation's (ATLO) mission and values are defintely rooted in a traditional community banking model, focusing on local relationships and stability over aggressive, high-risk growth.

This approach shapes their strategy in central Iowa, where they manage total assets of roughly $2.1 billion as of September 30, 2025, prioritizing the health of their regional markets over chasing national scale.

Ames National Corporation's Core Purpose

Understanding a company's mission is key to assessing its long-term risk profile and management's commitment, especially for a regional bank navigating a volatile interest rate environment.

For Ames National Corporation, their cultural DNA is built on serving the specific needs of their Iowa communities, which is why their net interest margin (NIM) improved to a strong 2.67% for the first nine months of 2025, driven by local loan volumes and disciplined funding costs.

Official mission statement

The mission statement clearly defines the three pillars of the company's operating philosophy. It's a simple, actionable mandate that keeps their six affiliate banks aligned across 11 communities.

• Customer Focused: Prioritizing client needs and long-term relationships.
• Locally Empowered: Allowing affiliate banks to make quick, customized decisions.
• Team Member Driven: Recognizing employees as the primary drivers of community success.

Vision statement

The vision statement is ambitious but grounded in their core competency-community banking-not simply being the largest bank.

Their goal is: To be one of the best performing community banking organizations in the Midwest. This means they measure success not just by net income, which hit $12.5 million for the first nine months of 2025, but by metrics like efficiency ratio and capital strength, like their Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 13.9% as of mid-2025.

To be fair, this focus is why their full-year 2025 earnings per share (EPS) is forecasted to land between $1.72 and $1.82, a solid range that reflects stable, conservative growth.

Ames National Corporation slogan/tagline

While Ames National Corporation doesn't push a single, flashy corporate slogan, their operational ethos is consistently communicated through themes like 'Trusted Community Partner' or 'Building Community.'

This focus is the moat (competitive advantage) protecting their business model. They aren't trying to out-innovate the big Wall Street firms; they're trying to be the most reliable financial partner in Story County and the surrounding area. You can see how this plays out in their shareholder base by Exploring Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Their core values-Excellence, Integrity, Leadership, Stability, Trust, and Community-guide every decision, from loan provisioning to how they manage their stockholders' equity of over $200 million. You're buying into that stability.

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) How It Works

Ames National Corporation operates as a multi-bank holding company, generating revenue primarily through traditional community banking-taking deposits from customers and using those funds to originate loans and purchase investment securities in central and northern Iowa. It is a classic regional bank model focused on building deep, long-term relationships with local businesses and individuals.

Given Company's Product/Service Portfolio

Given Company's Operational Framework

The company's operational framework is built on a decentralized, local presence across Iowa, managed centrally as a bank holding company. They own 100% of six banking subsidiaries, which allows them to maintain a strong community identity while benefiting from shared resources. All operations are concentrated within the State of Iowa, primarily serving Story, Boone, and Hamilton counties.

The core value creation process is simple: manage the spread between interest earned on assets (loans and investments) and interest paid on liabilities (deposits and borrowings). The first nine months of 2025 saw strong performance here, with net interest income (NII) totaling more than $40 million. They defintely focus on cost control, too. The bank's efficiency ratio-a measure of operating expense relative to revenue-improved significantly to 64.10% for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, which is a clear sign of better management.

• Asset Base: Total assets stood at approximately $2.108 billion as of September 30, 2025.
• Funding Model: Deposits are the primary funding source, totaling $1.833 billion in Q3 2025.
• Lending Focus: Net loans were approximately $1.276 billion, with a strategic emphasis on commercial and agricultural sectors.

Given Company's Strategic Advantages

Ames National Corporation's market success doesn't come from being a financial giant; it comes from being a deeply rooted community bank with a conservative, well-capitalized structure. This focus on local relationships is their main differentiating factor against larger national institutions.

• Capital Strength: The bank maintains a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 13.9% as of mid-2025, which is comfortably above regulatory requirements and provides a significant buffer against economic downturns.
• Local Expertise: A long operating history in central Iowa gives them superior knowledge of the local commercial real estate and agricultural markets, allowing for better credit underwriting than an outsider could manage.
• Improved Profitability: Recent efforts have driven a substantial increase in profitability, with Net Income for the first nine months of 2025 reaching $12.5 million, up sharply from the prior year.
• Conservative Risk Profile: A conservative loan-to-deposit ratio of around 72% (based on 2024 figures) shows they are not over-leveraged and have ample liquidity to meet customer needs.

If you want to understand the investor side of this regional stability, you should read Exploring Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) How It Makes Money

Ames National Corporation, a bank holding company, primarily makes money through the classic banking model: borrowing short and lending long, which generates a profit from the interest rate spread. This core activity, known as net interest income, is supplemented by fees from services like wealth management and deposit accounts.

You're looking for where the cash flow actually comes from, and for a regional bank like Ames National, it's all about the margin between what they pay for deposits and what they earn on loans and investments. It's a simple model, but the execution in a volatile rate environment is defintely complex.

Ames National Corporation's Revenue Breakdown

As of the third quarter of 2025, the vast majority of Ames National Corporation's revenue is derived from its lending activities, which is typical for a community-focused bank. Here's the quick math on the quarterly revenue mix, totaling $16.5 million in Q3 2025.

The 84.8% contribution from Net Interest Income (NII) shows the company's reliance on its loan portfolio performance. Noninterest Income, while smaller, is an important diversifier, largely driven by wealth management and service fees, and it's growing.

Business Economics

The financial health of Ames National Corporation hinges on its Net Interest Margin (NIM), which is the difference between the interest income generated and the amount of interest paid out to depositors and other creditors. The NIM for Q3 2025 was a strong 2.83%, a significant improvement from the prior year.

This margin expansion is the key opportunity. It was driven by two factors: higher yields on the loan portfolio and a decreased cost of funds due to lower market rates and reduced borrowings. Essentially, they're earning more on their assets and paying less on their liabilities.

• Primary Asset Base: Loans receivable, net, stood at $1.276 billion as of October 31, 2025, representing the core earning engine.
• Primary Funding Base: Total deposits were $1.833 billion at the same date, which is the low-cost fuel for the loan engine.
• Non-Interest Revenue: The growth in noninterest income is fueled by the wealth management segment, which benefits from growth in assets under management and new client relationships.

The challenge remains managing credit loss expense, which rose to $627 thousand in Q3 2025, primarily due to specific reserves in commercial real estate and operating loan portfolios. What this estimate hides is the potential impact of a broader commercial real estate downturn, but for now, it remains manageable.

Ames National Corporation's Financial Performance

The company delivered a strong performance in the first nine months of the 2025 fiscal year, showing that the strategy to improve interest rate spreads is working. You can see how these operational choices align with the firm's broader strategy by reviewing the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Ames National Corporation (ATLO).

• Net Income (Q3 2025): Surged to $4.6 million, up from $2.2 million in Q3 2024.
• Earnings Per Share (EPS) (Q3 2025): Reached $0.51, a substantial jump from $0.25 a year prior.
• Year-to-Date Net Income (9M 2025): Totaled $12.5 million, nearly doubling the $6.7 million earned in the same period of 2024.
• Efficiency Ratio (Q3 2025): Improved significantly to 61.76%, showing better cost management relative to revenue generation.
• Return on Average Equity (ROAE) (Q3 2025): Hit 9.31%, indicating a solid return for shareholders on their invested capital.

Here's the quick math on profitability: the Return on Average Assets (ROAA) for Q3 2025 was 0.88%. This is a key metric for banks, and while it's not a blow-out number, it shows a clear upward trend in asset utilization. Total assets stood at $2.108 billion as of October 31, 2025. Next step is to track if they can maintain that 2.83% NIM as rate expectations shift.

Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Market Position & Future Outlook

Ames National Corporation is defintely poised for stability, leveraging its deep community roots in Central Iowa to navigate the volatile regional banking environment. The company's future outlook is cautiously optimistic, driven by a significant improvement in profitability, with net income reaching $12.5 million for the first nine months of 2025, nearly double the prior year's period.

Competitive Landscape

As a multi-bank holding company focused solely on Iowa, Ames National Corporation competes directly with larger regional players and smaller community banks. While its state-wide market share is modest, its strength lies in localized, relationship-based banking in its core markets.

Opportunities & Challenges

The company's strategic focus on loan growth and cost control has paid off in 2025, but the broader industry faces persistent headwinds. The key is translating improved margins into sustainable long-term growth.

Industry Position

Ames National Corporation operates as a small-cap regional bank with a market capitalization of approximately $189.2 million as of November 2025. Its primary strength is its localized, relationship-driven model across six affiliate banks in Iowa, which provides a level of customer stickiness that larger national institutions often lack. The bank's efficiency ratio improved dramatically to 61.76% in the third quarter of 2025, a strong indicator of management's successful cost control efforts. You can find a more granular look at the balance sheet here: Breaking Down Ames National Corporation (ATLO) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

• Improvement in profitability is clear: Q3 2025 Net Interest Income was $14.0 million, up 26.8% year-over-year.
• The bank's conservative capital structure, with a CET1 ratio well above regulatory minimums, provides a cushion against unexpected credit deterioration.
• The regional banking industry is consolidating, and ATLO's strong capital and improved efficiency make it a potentially attractive target or a platform for inorganic growth.

They're a solid local player, but scale remains their biggest long-term hurdle.