Westamerica Bancorporation Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.44 (NASDAQ:WABC)

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, July 25th, NASDAQ reports. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th will be given a dividend of 0.44 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 5th.

Westamerica Bancorporation has raised its dividend payment by an average of 1.6% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 32 years. Westamerica Bancorporation has a payout ratio of 36.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Westamerica Bancorporation to earn $4.45 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 39.6%.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

Westamerica Bancorporation stock traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $55.82. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 128,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 138,800. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 0.56. Westamerica Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $41.89 and a twelve month high of $58.49. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $49.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.03. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 20.17% and a net margin of 47.12%. The business had revenue of $79.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $74.28 million. Research analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP George S. Ensinger sold 635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.61, for a total transaction of $30,232.35. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,073 shares in the company, valued at $193,915.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $57.00 price target (down previously from $58.00) on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Maxim Group cut shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Westamerica Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westamerica Bancorporation has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $57.00.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.