United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.3333.

UCB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. 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 boosted their price objective 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. Finally, Hovde Group upped their price objective on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,654 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 75,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,274,081.98. This trade represents a 2.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Community Banks

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. M&T Bank Corp bought a new position in United Community Banks in the 1st quarter worth $926,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the first quarter worth about $16,721,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the first quarter worth about $460,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the first quarter worth about $224,000. Finally, Smith Thornton Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 1st quarter valued at about $474,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

United Community Banks Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:UCB opened at $29.96 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $30.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 11.89 and a beta of 0.91. United Community Banks has a 12-month low of $22.93 and a 12-month high of $35.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

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

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.68%.

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.