United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on UCB. DA Davidson raised their price target on United Community Banks from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Stephens lifted their price target on United Community Banks from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised shares of United Community Banks to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Community Banks from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.00.

United Community Banks Stock Performance

NYSE UCB opened at $37.18 on Wednesday. United Community Banks has a 1-year low of $28.65 and a 1-year high of $37.24. The company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.51 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $34.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77. The company had revenue of $291.90 million for the quarter. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.66% and a net margin of 9.06%. Sell-side analysts expect that United Community Banks will post 3.00 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from United Community Banks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. United Community Banks’s payout ratio is currently 88.14%.

Insider Activity

In other United Community Banks news, EVP Jefferson Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.41, for a total transaction of $885,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,325,502.53. This trade represents a 40.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total transaction of $49,968.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 83,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,920,470.52. This represents a 1.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Community Banks

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UCB. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in United Community Banks during the second quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in United Community Banks by 13.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the period. 82.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. Through its principal subsidiary, United Community Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to consumers, businesses and communities primarily across the Southeastern United States.

United Community Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, residential mortgages, credit cards, online and mobile banking, treasury management and other financial services. Its lending activities include commercial real estate, business, construction, residential and consumer loans.