Inspire Investing LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) by 6.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,028 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 781 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in United Community Banks were worth $388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UCB. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $132,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $665,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $226,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $1,860,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $135,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.94, for a total transaction of $49,999.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 78,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,425,541.30. This trade represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UCB shares. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of United Community Banks from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Community Banks currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.57.

United Community Banks Price Performance

Shares of UCB opened at $29.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. United Community Banks, Inc. has a one year low of $22.93 and a one year high of $35.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $31.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39 and a beta of 0.83.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.05. United Community Banks had a net margin of 17.93% and a return on equity of 8.91%. The business had revenue of $260.24 million during the quarter. The business’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from United Community Banks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.45%.

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.