United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.25

United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of 0.25 per share on Friday, July 3rd. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th.

United Community Banks has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years.

United Community Banks Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of UCB traded down $0.70 on Friday, hitting $31.96. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 230,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 880,812. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $32.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.31. United Community Banks has a fifty-two week low of $27.23 and a fifty-two week high of $36.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 0.83.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The firm had revenue of $278.27 million for the quarter. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 22.05%.The company’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Community Banks will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Community Banks

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.09, for a total value of $49,965.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 84,497 shares in the company, valued at $2,796,005.73. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Community Banks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UCB. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth $48,450,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in United Community Banks in the 1st quarter worth $34,183,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in United Community Banks by 70.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,380,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,103,000 after purchasing an additional 571,296 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in United Community Banks by 125.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 774,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,286,000 after purchasing an additional 431,491 shares during the period. Finally, Azora Capital LP bought a new position in United Community Banks in the 3rd quarter worth $13,423,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc (NYSE: UCB) is a bank holding company headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. It operates primarily through its subsidiary, United Community Bank, providing a broad range of banking and financial services to individual, business and governmental customers. The company’s core offerings include deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, treasury and cash management services, and wealth management.

In addition to traditional banking products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, United Community Bank specializes in commercial real estate financing, small business administration (SBA) loans, equipment financing and agricultural lending.