This unique bank keeps raising the dividend by 1% every year

Park National is known for its 1% annual dividend hikes

Park National Corp (ticker symbol PRK) keeps impressing dividendwise, not because of its big increases, but for its regular annual dividend hikes of exactly 1% every year. We don't know any other company with such a track record.

Park National, a $2.1 billion financial holding company headquartered in Newark, Ohio, reported 2023 results on January 22, 2024.  Park's board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.06 per common share, payable on March 8, 2024, to common shareholders of record as of February 16, 2024.

This is exactly 1% higher than the previous dividend and matches the 1.0% dividend hikes by Park National in each of the four previous years. This makes the company unique since we don't know about any other companies announcing this exact 1% increase annually for the last five years.

PARK NATIONAL (PRK) ANNUAL DIVIDEND HIKES

• 2024: +1.0% to $1.06 quarterly
• 2023: +1.0% to $1.05 quarterly
• 2022: +1.0% to $1.04 quarterly
• 2021: +1.0% to $1.03 quarterly
• 2020: +1.0% to $1.02 quarterly

Park National has now raised the dividend for 7 straight years with a 1% dividend hike since 2020. Obviously the 5 year CAGR for the dividend is also 1% right now. At a stock price of $132 the dividend yield for Park National is 3.2%. Based on our calculations the company now pays an estimated $68 million in dividends to shareholders annually.

Interestingly enough Park National also paid special dividends in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. The last special dividend of $0.50 per share was announced back in October 2022. Another company announcing dividend hikes in exact round numbers annually, although not the same percentage, is Dividend Aristocrat Procter & Gamble (PG).

Headquartered in Newark, Ohio, Park National Corporation has $9.8 billion in total assets (as of December 31, 2023). Park's banking operations are conducted through its subsidiary The Park National Bank. Other Park subsidiaries are Scope Leasing, Inc. (d.b.a. Scope Aircraft Finance), Guardian Financial Services Company (d.b.a. Guardian Finance Company) and SE Property Holdings, LLC.