Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity
Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Shareholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Common Stock
The Company’s Common Stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbol “WAFD.” At September 30, 2023, the number of shareholders of record was 1,045. This figure does not represent the actual number of beneficial owners of Common Stock because shares are frequently held in “street name” by securities dealers and others for the benefit of individual owners who may vote the shares.
Additional information about stock options and other equity compensation plans is included in Note P to the Consolidated Financial Statements in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” of this report.
The Company’s ability to pay dividends is subject to bank regulatory requirements, including (but not limited to) the capital adequacy regulations and policies established by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The Company’s Board of Directors' dividend policy is to review our financial performance, capital adequacy, regulatory compliance and cash resources on a quarterly basis, and, if such review is favorable, to declare and pay a quarterly cash dividend to common shareholders.
The Company’s 4.875% Fixed Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A (the “Series A Preferred”), ranks senior to the Company’s Common Stock with respect to payment of dividends, and dividends (if declared) accrue and are payable on the Series A Preferred a rate of 4.875% per annum, payable quarterly, in arrears. While the Series A Preferred is outstanding, unless the full dividend for the preceding quarterly period is paid in full, or declared and a sum set aside, no dividend may be declared or paid on the Company’s Common Stock.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
The Company’s stock repurchase program was publicly announced by the board of directors on February 3, 1995 and has no expiration date. Under this program, a total of 76,956,264 shares of the Company’s Common Stock have been authorized for repurchase. The following table shows the share repurchases made for the three months ended September 30, 2023.
Period Total Number of
Shares Purchased Average Price
Paid Per Share Total Number of
Shares Purchased
as Part of Publicly
Announced Plan Maximum
Number of Shares
That May Yet Be
Purchased Under
the Plan at the
End of the Period
July 1, 2023 to July 31, 2023 211 $ 30.25 211 2,559,400
August 1, 2023 to August 31, 2023 217 30.55 217 2,559,183
September 1, 2023 to September 30, 2023 — — — 2,559,183
Total 428 $ 30.41 428 2,559,183
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Performance Graphs
The following graphs compare the cumulative total return to WaFd shareholders (stock price appreciation plus reinvested dividends) to the cumulative total return of the Nasdaq Stock Market Index (U.S. Companies) and the KBW Bank Index for the five year period ended September 30, 2023, and since WaFd first became a publicly traded company on November 9, 1982, respectively. The graphs assume that $100 was invested on September 30, 2018, and November 9, 1982, respectively, in WaFd Common Stock, the Nasdaq Stock Market Index and the Nasdaq Financial Stocks Index, and that all dividends were reinvested. Management of WaFd cautions that the stock price performance shown in the graphs below should not be considered indicative of potential future stock price performance.
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Item 6. [Reserved]