COMMUNITY BANK SYSTEM INC

Item 5. Market for the Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The Company’s common stock has been trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CBU” since December 31, 1997. Prior to that, the common stock traded over-the-counter on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol “CBSI” beginning on September 16, 1986. There were 53,328,534 shares of common stock outstanding on January 31, 2024, held by approximately 3,528 registered shareholders of record.

The Company has historically paid regular quarterly cash dividends on its common stock, and declared a cash dividend of $0.45 per share for the first quarter of 2024. The Board presently intends to continue the payment of regular quarterly cash dividends on the common stock. However, because the substantial majority of the funds available for the payment of dividends by the Company are derived from the subsidiary Bank, future dividends will depend largely upon the earnings of the Bank, its financial condition, its need for funds and applicable governmental policies and regulations.

The following graph compares cumulative total shareholders returns on the Company’s common stock over the last five fiscal years to the S&P 600 Commercial Banks Index, the NASDAQ Bank Index, the S&P 500 Index, and the KBW Regional Banking Index. Total return values were calculated as of December 31 of each indicated year assuming a $100 investment on December 31, 2018 and reinvestment of dividends.

Equity Compensation Plan Information

The following table provides information as of December 31, 2023 with respect to shares of common stock that may be issued under the Company’s existing equity compensation plans.

Stock Repurchase Program

At its December 2023 meeting, the Board approved a new stock repurchase program authorizing the repurchase, at the discretion of senior management, of up to 2,697,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, in accordance with securities and banking laws and regulations, during the twelve-month period starting January 1, 2024. Any repurchased shares will be used for general corporate purposes, including those related to stock plan activities. The timing and extent of repurchases will depend on market conditions and other corporate considerations as determined at the Company’s discretion. At its December 2022 meeting, the Board approved a stock repurchase program authorizing the repurchase, at the discretion of senior management, of up to 2,697,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, in accordance with securities and banking laws and regulations, during the twelve-month period starting January 1, 2023. There were 607,161 shares of treasury stock purchases made under this authorization in 2023.

The following table presents stock purchases made during the fourth quarter of 2023:

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

(1) Included in the common shares repurchased were 1,249 shares acquired by the Company in connection with the administration of a deferred compensation plan. These shares were not repurchased as part of the publicly announced repurchase plan described above.