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Glacier Bancorp (GBCI) Rewards Investors With Special Dividend

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Glacier Bancorp, Inc.’s (GBCI - Free Report) board of directors has announced a special dividend of 10 cents per share. The amount will be paid out on Jan 20, 2022 to its shareholders of record as of Jan 11. Prior to this move, GBCI had declared five annual special dividends, consecutively.

Additionally, Glacier Bancorp pays a regular quarterly cash dividend. GBCI last hiked its dividend 3.3% to 32 cents per share in June 2021. Based on the last day’s closing price of $17.03, GBCI’s dividend yield currently stands at 2.2%. The yield is impressive compared with the industry average of 1.38%. It is not only attractive for income investors but also represents a steady income stream. Moreover, GBCI increased quarterly dividends 48 times.

As of Sep 30, 2021, cash and cash equivalents stood at $388.9 million. With an improving time-interest-earned ratio and a total debt/total capital ratio of 56.9 and 0.06, respectively, its capital-deployment activities seem sustainable. These drivers create ample investor confidence and scope for investment and growth opportunities in the future.

Now, let’s analyze whether Glacier Bancorp stock is worth considering based on its dividend income. Shares of Glacier Bancorp have inched up 2% in the past six months compared with 11.4% growth of its industry.

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Investors interested in this presently Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock must take a look at its fundamentals and prospects. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Revenue Growth: Glacier Bancorp’s revenues witnessed a CAGR of 15.4% over the last five years (2016-2020). Further, its projected sales growth rate of 13.9% for 2022 indicates the trend to continue.

Earnings Strength: Over the last three-five years, Glacier Bancorp saw earnings per share (EPS) growth of 16.85%. The stock is expected to retain this momentum with an earnings growth projection of 0.2% for 2022. Moreover, GBCI has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 11.8%, on average.

Strong Leverage: Glacier Bancorp’s debt/equity ratio is valued at 0.07 compared with the industry average of 0.13, implying a relatively lower debt burden. It highlights GBCI’s financial stability amid an uncertain economic environment.

Superior Return on Equity (ROE): Glacier Bancorp’s ROE of 13.52% compared with its industry average of 12.47% highlights its competitive edge over its peers.

Other Banks Rewarding Shareholders

Over the past few months, several banks have rewarded shareholders with dividend hikes. Some of these are Farmers National Banc Corp. (FMNB - Free Report) , United Bankshares, Inc. (UBSI - Free Report) and The Community Financial Corporation .

Farmers National announced a sequential hike in the quarterly dividend of 27.3%, increasing the total to 14 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Dec 31 to its shareholders of record as of Dec 10, 2021.

This marks the sixth consecutive quarter of an increase by Farmers National. Prior to this, FMNB hiked the dividend by 10%, augmenting the total to 11 cents per share.

Farmers National’s management noted that “since 2015, our annual cash dividend has increased at an impressive 26% compound annual growth rate, reflecting our strong financial results and commitment to returning capital to shareholders.”

United Bankshares announced a dividend of 36 cents per share, up 2.9% from the prior payout. The dividend will be paid out on Jan 3, 2022, to its shareholders of record as of Dec 2, 2021.

In aggregate, United Bankshares will pay $46.5 million on 129.2 million shares. Prior to the recent hike, UBSI announced an increase in its quarterly dividend by 2.9%, raising the sum to 35 cents per share in November 2019.

Community Financial announced a 17% sequential hike in the quarterly cash dividend. TCFC  will now pay out a dividend of 17.5 cents per share on Jan 24 to its shareholders of record as of Jan 10, 2022.

TCFC’s management noted, "Our performance in the past year has been exceptional, despite many pandemic related challenges felt across the industry and Country. This increase in the quarterly dividend reflects the strong financial position of the Company and our continued commitment to returning value to shareholders."

Earlier in February, Community Financial hiked its dividend by 20%, increasing the same to 15 cents per share.


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