Homestreet Stock Price, News & Analysis
Company Description
HomeStreet, Inc. (historically trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker HMST) was a diversified financial services company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. According to its public disclosures, HomeStreet served consumers and businesses in the Western United States and Hawaii and was principally engaged in real estate lending, including mortgage banking activities, as well as commercial and consumer banking. Its principal subsidiary was HomeStreet Bank.
HomeStreet operated as a bank holding company in the finance and insurance sector, with a focus that aligned with the savings institutions and community banking industry. Company materials describe HomeStreet Bank as one of the largest community banks in the Northwest, California and Hawaii, with a primary area of community focus on housing and homes. Over its history, the organization emphasized building long-term relationships with customers and supporting local communities.
In addition to its core banking activities, HomeStreet has described its offerings as including commercial banking, commercial lending, consumer banking, mortgage lending, residential construction financing, commercial real estate financing and insurance services. These activities positioned the company across multiple segments of retail and commercial finance, centered on real estate-related credit and traditional deposit and lending services.
Corporate transformation into Mechanics Bancorp
HomeStreet underwent a significant corporate transformation as a result of a strategic merger with Mechanics Bank. Under an Agreement and Plan of Merger dated March 28, 2025, HomeStreet Bank, a Washington state-chartered commercial bank and wholly owned subsidiary of HomeStreet, merged with and into Mechanics Bank, a California banking corporation.
According to a Form 8-K filed on September 2, 2025, the merger closed on September 2, 2025. At the effective time of the merger, HomeStreet Bank merged with and into Mechanics Bank, with Mechanics Bank surviving the merger and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of the holding company. In connection with the transaction, the holding company changed its name from HomeStreet, Inc. to Mechanics Bancorp. The filing states that, following the merger, the company’s business became primarily the business conducted by Mechanics Bank.
The same Form 8-K explains that the company amended its articles of incorporation immediately prior to the merger to effect the name change to Mechanics Bancorp and to authorize two classes of common stock, designated Class A and Class B common stock. It also notes that Class A common stock, which had previously traded on Nasdaq under the symbol HMST, would commence trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol MCHB on September 2, 2025.
Merger rationale and combined footprint
Joint press releases by Mechanics Bank and HomeStreet describe the merger as an all-stock business combination intended to create a premier, publicly traded West Coast bank. Mechanics Bank is described as an independent, full-service community bank based in Walnut Creek, California. HomeStreet’s disclosures indicate that it operated branches throughout Washington, Oregon, Southern California and Hawaii and that it was engaged in real estate lending and commercial and consumer banking.
The merger announcement notes that Mechanics Bank is a 120-year-old full-service community bank and that HomeStreet was founded in 1921. The combination was presented as expanding Mechanics Bank’s West Coast footprint and integrating HomeStreet’s markets in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii into the combined organization.
Business activities before the merger
Before the merger with Mechanics Bank, HomeStreet’s public filings and news releases describe it as focusing on:
- Real estate lending, including mortgage banking activities.
- Commercial banking and commercial lending.
- Consumer banking, serving retail customers.
- Residential construction financing and commercial real estate financing.
- Insurance services associated with its banking activities.
HomeStreet’s earnings releases and related materials also discuss its use of non-GAAP financial measures, such as core net income (loss), core noninterest expenses, tangible common equity, tangible assets, and efficiency ratios, to supplement GAAP results. These measures were used by management to assess performance and to present adjusted views of profitability and capital, particularly in the context of loan sales, merger-related expenses and other significant items.
Status of the HMST ticker
Following the completion of the merger and the name change to Mechanics Bancorp, the company disclosed that its Class A common stock, previously known as HomeStreet common stock and trading under the symbol HMST, would begin trading under the new ticker MCHB on the Nasdaq Global Select Market as of September 2, 2025. This means that the HMST symbol represents the historical trading symbol for HomeStreet, Inc. prior to its transformation into Mechanics Bancorp.
Use of non-GAAP measures and regulatory context
HomeStreet’s earnings releases detail how management used non-GAAP measures such as core net income (loss), core noninterest expenses, tangible book value per share, and efficiency ratios. These measures excluded certain items, including losses on large loan sales, deferred tax asset valuation allowances, loss on debt extinguishment, merger-related expenses and certain state taxes, to provide what the company described as additional insight into underlying performance.
HomeStreet and, following the merger, Mechanics Bancorp have been subject to periodic reporting requirements under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The company has filed Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as registration statements on Form S-4 in connection with the merger. These filings provide detailed information on financial condition, results of operations, risk factors and the mechanics of the merger transaction.