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Eagle Bancorp (EGBN) Up 1.9% on Dividend Hike Announcement

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Shares of Eagle Bancorp, Inc. (EGBN - Free Report) gained 1.9% in response to the announcement of a rise in the quarterly dividend. Last week, the company declared a quarterly dividend of 45 cents per share, marking a 12.5% hike from the prior payout. The dividend will be paid out on Jul 29 to shareholders of record on Jul 11.

Eagle Bancorp has been regularly increasing dividend payouts. Prior to this, the company had raised its dividend by 14.3% to 40 cents per share in September 2021. We believe such disbursements highlight the company’s operational strength and commitment to enhancing shareholder wealth.

Considering the last day’s closing price of $45.93, EGBN’s dividend yield currently stands at 3.92%. The yield is also significantly impressive compared with the industry average of 2.30%. Not only is the yield attractive for income investors, but also it represents a steady income stream.

Apart from regular dividend payments, Eagle Bancorp has a share repurchase plan in place. Under the plan, it is authorized to buy back up to 1.6 million shares. The program is set to expire on Dec 31, 2022.

Eagle Bancorp boasts an impressive balance sheet. As of Mar 31, 2022, it had total cash and cash equivalents of $695 million and total debt worth $219.7 million. The company’s strong liquidity position and low-cost capital structure indicate that it will be able to continue with efficient capital deployment activities, thereby enhancing its shareholder value.

Over the past year, shares of EGBN have lost 17.7% compared with a 9.7% decline of the industry it belongs to.

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Eagle Bancorp currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Other Banks Taking Similar Steps

Over the past few months, several finance stocks have rewarded their shareholders with dividend hikes. Some of these are Bank OZK (OZK - Free Report) and ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (ESSA - Free Report) .

Bank OZK declared a cash dividend of 31 cents per share, marking a 3.3% increase from the prior payout. The dividend was paid out on Apr 22 to shareholders of record on Apr 15.

This represents the 47th consecutive quarter of dividend hike by Bank OZK. Prior to this, OZK hiked its dividend by 3.4% to 30 cents per share this January.

ESSA Bancorp announced a 25% hike in its quarterly dividend to 15 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Jun 30 to shareholders of record on Jun 16.

ESSA has been regularly increasing dividend payouts. Prior to this, the company had raised its dividend by 9.1% to 12 cents per share in February 2021.


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