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

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 23rd,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of 0.44 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%.

Westamerica Bancorporation has increased its dividend by an average of 2.2% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 15 years. Westamerica Bancorporation has a payout ratio of 43.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Westamerica Bancorporation to earn $3.95 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 44.6%.

Westamerica Bancorporation Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of WABC traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $51.57. 27,536 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 111,416. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $54.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.24. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.96 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $43.82 and a 12 month high of $59.97.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 44.55% and a return on equity of 16.15%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th.

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.