Western Alliance Bancorporation of Phoenix left its dividend unchanged at 36 cents a share in May and yields 3%. As of Friday, the bank's common stock still yields 7.1%, albeit down from 8.5% as recently as May. Comerica Bank in Dallas pays a dividend equivalent to a 5.5% yield, down from 7.9% in May. The banks' yields have fallen as the stocks have recovered some of their losses from earlier in the year. To judge the safety of bank dividends, take a look at their dividend payout ratios , which measure the percentage of earnings paid out in dividends.

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Persons: Janney Montgomery Scott, Janney, Daniel Cardenas, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: PacWest Bancorp, Western Alliance, Truist Financial Corp, Rhode, Financial, Valley Bank, First Republic Bank, Comerica Bank, Heritage Commerce, Northrim BanCorp, Financial of, National Bancorp of Locations: Phoenix, Charlotte , North Carolina, Cleveland, Dallas, 2H23, Los Angeles, San Jose , California, Alaska, Financial of Ohio, National Bancorp of New Jersey