First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) to Issue $0.22 Quarterly Dividend

First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 21st,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of 0.22 per share by the bank on Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th.

First United has raised its dividend by an average of 14.5% annually over the last three years. First United has a payout ratio of 26.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect First United to earn $3.30 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.88 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 26.7%.

First United Stock Performance

FUNC traded up $0.26 on Thursday, reaching $34.46. The stock had a trading volume of 24,158 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,783. First United has a 12-month low of $18.01 and a 12-month high of $35.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $31.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.45. The company has a market cap of $222.96 million, a P/E ratio of 14.01 and a beta of 0.78.

First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.10. First United had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The business had revenue of $28.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.30 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that First United will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of First United from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th.

About First United

First United Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First United Bank & Trust that provides various retail and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals. It offers various deposit products, which includes checking, savings, money market deposit, and regular and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), as well as certificates of deposit.