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MEDIA CONTACT: Vicki Kessler 615-320-7532
FINANCIAL CONTACT: Harold Carpenter 615-744-3742
DETAILED FINANCIALS: Form 8K

Pinnacle Financial Reports Strong Performance
Fully diluted earnings per share up 42 percent

NASHVILLE, Tenn., April 17, 2007 – Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (Nasdaq/NGS: PNFP) today reported strong performance for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. Fully diluted earnings per share were $0.34 for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, compared to $0.24 fully diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2006, which included the impact of $0.03 of merger related expenses associated with the Cavalry Bancorp, Inc. acquisition consummated on March 15, 2006.

FIRST QUARTER 2007 HIGHLIGHTS:

• Earnings:
• Net income for the first quarter of 2007 of $5.60 million, up 114 percent from the prior year’s first quarter net income of $2.61 million.
• Diluted earnings per share for the first quarter of 2007 of $0.34, up 42 percent from the same quarter last year.
• Revenue (the sum of net interest income and noninterest income) for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, amounted to $22.11 million, compared to $11.56 million for the same quarter of last year, an increase of 91 percent.
• Superior credit quality:
• Net charge-offs as a percentage of average loan volumes were 0.03 percent for the quarter ended March 31, 2007.
• Nonperforming assets were only 0.36 percent of total loans and other real estate at March 31, 2007 down from 0.54 percent at December 31, 2006. Past due loans over 30 days, excluding nonperforming loans, were only 0.33 percent of total loans and other real estate at March 31, 2007.
• Strong balance sheet growth:
• Loans at March 31, 2007, were $1.554 billion, up 26 percent from the same period last year, reflecting strong organic growth over the last year. Loans increased by $56 million during the first quarter of 2007, compared to $42 million in organic growth during the same quarter in 2006. Provision for loan losses for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 was $788,000, an increase of $401,000 from the same quarter in 2006.
• Total deposits at March 31, 2007, were $1.700 billion, up 20 percent from the same period last year. Noninterest bearing demand deposit accounts, which represent 18.1 percent of total deposits, were up 16.4 percent from the same period last year reflecting strong organic growth.
• Investments in future growth:
• Hired leadership for the denovo expansion to Knoxville that was announced on April 9, 2007, with plans to build a $500 million to $750 million franchise in Knoxville in five years.
• Opened a new office in March of 2007 in the Donelson area of Nashville reflecting continuing investment in the Middle Tennessee franchise to support future growth.
• Increased associate base by 15.5 FTE’s during the first quarter of 2007.

“We are pleased with our performance in the first quarter of 2007, particularly with respect to loan growth and the notable improvement in our credit quality measurements,” said M. Terry Turner, Pinnacle’s president and CEO. “Given the current shape of the yield curve, we continue to believe 2007 will be a challenging year for all banks. However, we are confident that we will continue to expand our client base and sustain our record of dramatic growth throughout 2007 because of our ability to increase our market share in the Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro MSA combined with our recent entry into the Knoxville MSA.”

Turner also commented on two industry matters that have received much attention in the media in recent weeks. He noted that Pinnacle decided several years ago to forego the development of any subprime lending products. He said recent national issues around subprime lending should not impact Pinnacle’s results now or in the future. Also, there has been much discussion concerning weakness in the commercial real estate segment in various markets around the country. Turner said that although Pinnacle has experienced reductions in the number of new projects being considered for funding, Pinnacle is not seeing decreases in the quality of its existing commercial real estate portfolio. He attributed the strength of Pinnacle’s commercial real estate portfolio to the stability of the Middle Tennessee economy and the fact that Middle Tennessee did not experience significant escalations in real estate prices which were experienced in other areas of the country in the last few years.

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE AND BALANCE SHEET GROWTH

• Return on average assets for first quarter 2007 was 1.06 percent. Return on average tangible assets (average assets less goodwill and core deposit intangibles) for first quarter 2007 was 1.12 percent, compared to 0.94 percent for the same quarter last year.
• Return on average stockholders’ equity for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, was 8.76 percent. Return on average tangible stockholders’ equity (average stockholders’ equity less goodwill and core deposit intangibles) for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, was 16.95 percent, compared to 14.30 percent for the same quarter last year.

Total assets grew to $2.193 billion as of March 31, 2007, up $365 million or 20.0 percent from the $1.828 billion reported at the same time last year. This rapid asset growth was achieved while reducing the securities to total assets ratio from 17.30 percent at March 31, 2006, to 15.51 percent at March 31, 2007.

CREDIT QUALITY

• Provision for loan losses was $788,000 for the first quarter of 2007, compared to $387,000 in the first quarter of 2006. Contributing to the increased provision expense between the two periods was the $56 million in organic loan growth during the first quarter of 2007, compared to $42 million in organic growth during the same quarter in 2006.
• During the first quarter of 2007, the firm recorded net charge-offs of only $114,000, compared to net recoveries of previously charged-off loans of $73,000 during the same period in 2006. Annualized net charge-offs to total average loans were 0.03 percent for the quarter ended March 31, 2007.
• Allowance for loan losses represented 1.08 percent of total loans at March 31, 2007, compared to 1.08 percent a year ago.
• Nonperforming assets as a percentage of total loans and other real estate decreased to 0.36 percent at March 31, 2007, from 0.54 percent at December 31, 2006.

“We believe our record of excellent asset quality since our founding in 2000 is a key predictor of our ability to create long-term shareholder value,” said Turner. “At the end of last year, several of our credit quality measurements, such as the percentage of nonperforming loans, had increased. We are pleased with our first quarter improvement in this area and attribute our success to our lending and credit associates and the special attention they gave this effort during the first quarter which resulted in reductions in nonperforming assets and past due loans.”

REVENUE

• Net interest income for first quarter 2007, was $17.08 million, compared to $9.51 million for the same quarter last year, an increase of 79.6 percent.
• Net interest margin for the first quarter of 2007 was 3.64 percent, compared to a net interest margin of 3.65 percent for the same period last year and 3.74 percent reported for the fourth quarter of 2006.
• Noninterest income for the first quarter 2007 was $5.03 million, a 145.4 percent increase over the $2.05 million recorded during the same quarter in 2006.

“We believe much of the decrease in our net interest margin is due to a seasonal decline in average balances for noninterest bearing deposit accounts and clients transferring balances into higher-yielding interest bearing transaction and money market accounts,” said Harold Carpenter, chief financial officer of Pinnacle Financial Partners. “Our loan pipelines remain strong and, due to our expected loan growth in both Nashville and Knoxville, we believe that we will experience growth in our revenue streams for the next few quarters.”

Carpenter also noted that it appeared deposit pricing in Nashville and Murfreesboro appeared to have stabilized over the last quarter since monthly funding costs had increased only modestly. He stated that the firm had recently initiated several margin improvement initiatives including the development and roll-out of a more sophisticated loan pricing model and the addition of more associates in the treasury management sales and service units to emphasize the sale of low-cost corporate operating accounts.

Noninterest income during the first quarter of 2007 represented approximately 22.73 percent of total revenues, compared to 17.73 percent for the same quarter in 2006. The increase in noninterest income between 2007 and 2006 was due primarily to the fee businesses acquired with the Cavalry merger, including insurance and trust.

NONINTEREST EXPENSE

• Noninterest expense for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, was $13.1 million.
• Compensation expense increased to $8.27 million during the first quarter of 2007, compared to $8.15 million in the fourth quarter of 2006 and $4.45 million during the first quarter of 2006. At March 31, 2007, the firm employed 419.5 associates (full-time equivalent), an increase of 15.5 associates since year end 2006.
• During the first quarter 2007 Pinnacle recognized compensation expense related to the expensing of stock options in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123R (“SFAS No. 123R”) of approximately $307,000 on an after-tax basis.
• Amortization expense associated with the core deposit intangible recorded in connection with the merger of Cavalry Bancorp, Inc. in March 2006 was $516,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2007, and compared to $132,000 for the same period last year.
• The efficiency ratio (noninterest expense divided by net interest income and noninterest income) was 59.4 percent during the first quarter of 2007, compared to 63.4 percent during the first quarter of 2006.

“On a linked quarter basis, expenses for the first quarter of 2007 were consistent with the prior quarter,” Carpenter said. “During the first quarter of 2007 we added 15.5 FTE’s and will continue to add new associates to support the anticipated growth of the firm, particularly with regard to the Knoxville expansion.”

During the first quarter of 2007, Pinnacle also opened its 18th office in the Donelson area of Nashville reflecting continuing investment in its middle Tennessee franchise.

KNOXVILLE EXPANSION

On April 9, 2007, Pinnacle announced its expansion to the Knoxville, Tenn., market and the hiring of two prominent veteran bankers to lead the firm in Knoxville. Pinnacle’s Knoxville president is Nathan Hunter, a 32-year banker who most recently led SunTrust’s retail operations in Knoxville. Twenty-two year banking veteran Mike DiStefano, who most recently led SunTrust’s commercial banking group, is Pinnacle’s client advisory group leader in the Knoxville market.

With $10.1 billion in deposits, the Knoxville market is similar to Nashville, with the large regional banks that dominate the market giving up market share due to customer dissatisfaction.

“We have said we would expand outside of Middle Tennessee with the right circumstances and the right leadership. We now have both and believe the Knoxville team we have begun to assemble will be able to build a $500 million to $750 million institution in Knoxville within five years,” Turner said.

INVESTMENT OUTLOOK

Management has developed several financial forecast scenarios for the next several quarters. Based on anticipated growth trends and future investments in the franchise, including the impact of the Knoxville expansion, Pinnacle estimates its second quarter 2007 diluted earnings per share will approximate $0.30 to $0.33, which includes approximately $0.04 dilution attributable to the Knoxville expansion. Additionally, based on anticipated growth trends and future investments in the franchise, Pinnacle estimates that its earnings will approximate $1.41 to $1.48 per fully diluted share for the year ended Dec. 31, 2007, which includes approximately $0.08 dilution attributable to the Knoxville expansion.

As noted previously, management has developed several scenarios under which these estimates can be achieved and believes these estimates to be reasonable based on these scenarios. However, unanticipated events or developments including the execution of any initiative involving the development of any markets other than metropolitan Nashville or Knoxville, any merger or acquisition, the opportunity to hire more seasoned professionals than anticipated or the ability to grow loans significantly in excess of the levels contemplated may cause the actual results of Pinnacle to differ materially from these estimates.

Pinnacle Financial Partners provides a full range of banking, investment and insurance products and services designed for small- to mid-sized businesses and their owners, real estate professionals and individuals interested in a deep relationship with their financial institution. Pinnacle provides financial planning services and comprehensive wealth management services to help clients increase, protect and distribute their assets. The firm also has a well-established expertise in commercial real estate.

Pinnacle opened its first office in October 2000. Since then the firm has added eight other offices on a denovo basis and acquired Cavalry Bancorp with its nine offices, bringing the total number of offices to 18 in the most attractive trade areas in the Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro MSA. The firm plans to open two offices in Knoxville this year, with another three by the end of 2010.

Additional information concerning Pinnacle can be accessed at www.pnfp.com.

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Certain of the statements in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The words "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "seek," "estimate" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, but other statements not based on historical information may also be considered forward-looking. All forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other facts that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Pinnacle to differ materially from any results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, without limitation, (i) unanticipated deterioration in the financial condition of borrowers resulting in significant increases in loan losses and provisions for those losses, (ii) the inability of Pinnacle to continue to grow its loan portfolio at historic rates in the Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro MSA or projected rates in the Knoxville MSA, (iii) increased competition with other financial institutions, (iv) lack of sustained growth in the economy in the Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro MSA and the Knoxville MSA, (v) rapid fluctuations or unanticipated changes in interest rates, (vi) the inability of Pinnacle to satisfy regulatory requirements for its expansion plans, (vii) the inability of Pinnacle to execute its expansion plans and (viii) changes in the legislative and regulatory environment. A more detailed description of these and other risks is contained in Pinnacle's most recent annual report on Form 10-K. Many of such factors are beyond Pinnacle's ability to control or predict, and readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Pinnacle disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.