November 20, 2009 (FinancialWire) — Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: SASR), the parent company of Sandy Spring Bank, announced that the board of directors has reduced the company’s common stock dividend for the fourth quarter to $0.01 from $0.12 per share, payable December 17, 2009, to shareholders of record on December 7, 2009. This action will enable the company to retain an additional $7.3 million in common equity per year.

“Our action reflects our commitment to maintaining a strong balance sheet as we continue to work our way through the current economic cycle,” said Daniel J. Schrider, president and chief executive officer. “While our capital levels are healthy and exceed the regulatory requirements to be considered ‘well-capitalized,’ we believe that taking this further step to conserve shareholders’ equity is a prudent business decision in light of current economic conditions. While we recognize the importance of the cash dividend to many of our shareholders, we believe it is in the best long-term interest of shareholders to be conservative in our capital planning. With this action, we intend to defer consideration of any capital raising transaction until we consider market conditions to be more advantageous.”

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