Guaranty Bancshares picks Newport Group as record keeper of ESOP

Guaranty Bancshares Inc., Mount Pleasant, Texas, hired Newport Group as record keeper of the Guaranty Bancshares Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan with 401(k) Provisions, the bank holding company said in an 8-K filed Wednesday.

Newport replaced Principal Financial Group as the record keeper last month.

Cappy Payne, senior executive vice president and chief financial officer, said an RFP was issued in August and Principal did not rebid. The company went public in May and was looking for a record keeper that could handle the transition for the retirement plan, Mr. Payne said. A fairly high percentage of the plan's total assets are invested in company stock, he said. Mr. Payne did not provide specifics.

The plan had $41 million in assets as of Dec. 31, 2016, according to its most recent Form 5500 filing.