Zions Bancorp's profit nearly doubles

July 23 (Reuters) - Regional lender Zions Bancorp's second-quarter profit nearly doubled as a result of a reduction in preferred stock dividends due to the $700 million TARP redemption and related warrant amortization in the first quarter.

Net income rose to $55.2 million, or 30 cents per share, from $29 million, or 16 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, Zions earned 40 cents per share.

The bank's shares, which have fallen about 9 percent in the last three months and underperformed the S&P 500 Index, closed at $18.57 on Monday on the Nasdaq.