Peoples Bancorp Inc. Announces 9% Increase In Quarterly Dividend

The Board of Directors of Peoples Bancorp

today declared a cash dividend of $0.12 per common share, representing a 9% increase from last quarter's dividend and a 20% increase over the dividend paid a year ago. "The Board's decision to increase the dividend reflects our confidence in Peoples' long-term earnings outlook," said Chuck Sulerzyski, Peoples' President and CEO. "The higher dividend also brings the payout ratio in line with our target range of 25% to 40%. We remain committed to generating shareholder returns superior to our peers through consistently strong earnings with appropriate dividend payouts." This quarterly dividend is payable on November 19, 2012, to common shareholders of record on November 5, 2012. Based on 10.7 million common shares currently outstanding, the dividend declared represents a payout of approximately $1.3 million, or 26.6% of Peoples' reported third quarter 2012 earnings. This quarterly dividend also produces an annualized yield of 2.25% based on the closing stock price of Peoples' common shares of $21.29 on October 24, 2012.