Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. Takes Position in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 180,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,362,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in United Community Banks by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 465,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,857,000 after acquiring an additional 53,754 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in United Community Banks by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 127,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,802,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in United Community Banks during the 2nd quarter worth $121,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of United Community Banks by 13.9% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 10,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its position in United Community Banks by 9.2% in the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 31,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $929,000 after purchasing an additional 2,629 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

United Community Banks Trading Down 0.1%

United Community Banks stock opened at $29.74 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $30.66. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.93 and a 52 week high of $35.38. The stock has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $276.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $270.85 million. United Community Banks had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 9.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.57 EPS.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on UCB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson raised their target price on United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Community Banks from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Hovde Group upped their price target on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,654 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.23, for a total value of $50,000.42. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,274,081.98. The trade was a 2.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Community Banks Company Profile

United Community Banks, Inc operates as the financial holding company for United Community Bank that provides financial products and services to commercial, retail, government, education, energy, health care, and real estate sectors. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts.