Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “SFNC.”
As of February 22, 2022, there were approximately 2,278 shareholders of record of our common stock. See the Cash Dividends discussion in the Capital section of Part II, Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations , for additional information regarding cash dividends.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Effective July 23, 2021, our Board of Directors approved an amendment to the Company’s stock repurchase program originally approved in October 2019 and first amended in March 2020 (“2019 Program”) that increased the amount of our Class A Common Stock that may be repurchased under the 2019 Program from a maximum of $180 million to a maximum of $276.5 million and extended the term of the 2019 Program from October 31, 2021, to October 31, 2022 (unless terminated sooner). The repurchase authorization under the 2019 Program was substantially exhausted during January 2022.
On January 27, 2022, we announced a new stock repurchase program (the “2022 Program”) under which we may repurchase up to $175 million of our Class A Common Stock currently issued and outstanding. The 2022 Program replaced the 2019 Program. The timing, pricing, and amount of any repurchases under the 2022 Program will be determined by management at its discretion based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to, trading volume and market price of our common stock, corporate considerations, the Company working capital and investment requirements, general market and economic conditions, and legal requirements. Under the 2022 Program, we may repurchase shares of our Class A Common Stock through open market and privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. The 2022 Program does not obligate us to repurchase any of our Class A Common Stock and may be modified, discontinued, or suspended at any time without prior notice. We anticipate funding for the 2022 Program to come from available sources of liquidity, including cash on hand and future cash flow.
Information concerning our purchases of common stock during the quarter ended December 31, 2021 is as follows:
Period Total Number of Shares Purchased (1)
Average Price Paid per Share Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or Programs Approximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plans or Programs
October 1 - 31, 2021 457,687 $ 30.47 457,687 $ 84,583,000
November 1 - 30, 2021 325,000 29.23 325,000 $ 75,082,000
December 1 - 31, 2021 1,842,661 29.58 1,842,661 $ 20,585,000
Total 2,625,348 $ 29.69 2,625,348
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(1) No shares of restricted stock were purchased in connection with employee tax withholding obligations under employee compensation plans, which are not purchases under any publicly announced plan.
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Performance Graph
The performance graph below compares the cumulative total shareholder return on the Company’s Common Stock with the cumulative total return of the Nasdaq Composite Index, the SNL U.S. Bank & Thrift Index, the Russell 2000 Index and KBW Regional Banking Index. The graph assumes an investment of $100 on December 31, 2016 and reinvestment of dividends on the date of payment without commissions. The performance graph represents past performance and should not be considered as an indication of future performance. In the preceding year, the Company selected the NASDAQ Composite and SNL U.S. Bank & Thrift Index as the indexes with which to compare its performance. The Company is replacing these indexes with the Russell 2000 Index and the KBW Regional Banking Index, respectively, as we believe these indexes are more representative of companies similar in size and market capitalization to the Company. In addition, the Company is a member of the Russell 2000 Index and, during 2021, was added as a member of the KBW Regional Bank Index.
Period Ending
Index 12/31/2016 12/31/2017 12/31/2018 12/31/2019 12/31/2020 12/31/2021
Simmons First National Corporation 100.00 93.56 80.70 91.91 76.98 108.04
Russell 2000 Index 100.00 114.63 101.99 127.98 153.49 176.18
KBW Nasdaq Regional Banking Index 100.00 95.60 84.00 104.05 95.02 129.84
Nasdaq Composite 100.00 129.73 126.08 172.41 250.08 305.63
SNL U.S. Bank & Thrift 100.00 118.21 98.75 135.64 118.33 160.89
ITEM 6. [RESERVED]
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