Five Star Bank parent company increases quarterly dividend by more than 7 percent

WARSAW, N.Y. — Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISI), parent of Five Star Bank, recently announced it is boosting its quarterly dividend by 7.4 percent.

The banking company will pay a quarterly cash dividend of 29 cents per common share outstanding for the first quarter of this year, up from the 27 cents a share it paid for the fourth quarter of last year.

Financial Institutions said it will pay the new, higher dividend on April 4, to shareholders of record on March 18.

“Following strong earnings performance in 2021, this 7.4% increase in the common stock dividend reflects our Board’s confidence in the Company’s strategy and earnings potential,” Martin K. Birmingham, Financial Institutions’ president and CEO, said in a Feb. 17 statement. “Today’s announcement represents our 12th consecutive annual dividend increase. This increase, and an ongoing share repurchase program, demonstrate our continued commitment to shareholder return.”

At the banking company’s current stock price, the new dividend yields about 3.7 percent on an annual basis.

Five Star Bank, based in Warsaw in Wyoming County, has more than 45 branches throughout Western and Central New York. Its CNY branches include offices in Auburn, Seneca Falls, Geneva, Ovid, Horseheads, and Elmira.

Financial Institutions and its subsidiaries employ about 600 people.