United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) Given New $38.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

Key Points

• Piper Sandler raised United Community Banks’ price target to $38 from $37 while maintaining a “neutral” rating, implying 8.87% potential upside. The consensus view is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $39.40.
• United Community Banks reported quarterly EPS of $0.71, below the $0.80 analyst consensus, on revenue of $279.28 million. The stock recently traded at $34.91, with a one-year range of $28.65 to $37.18.
• Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company and have generally increased their positions, while two executives recently sold shares. Insider ownership stands at 0.45%.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at Piper Sandler from $37.00 to $38.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. Piper Sandler's price objective points to a potential upside of 8.87% from the stock's current price.

UCB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen raised United Community Banks to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. DA Davidson set a $42.00 price objective on United Community Banks in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded United Community Banks from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Community Banks currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $39.40.

United Community Banks Price Performance

United Community Banks stock traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $34.91. 274,678 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 893,521. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. United Community Banks has a one year low of $28.65 and a one year high of $37.18. The stock has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $35.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.79.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by ($0.09). United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 24.43%.The company had revenue of $279.28 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts predict that United Community Banks will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Community Banks news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total value of $49,968.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 83,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,470.52. The trade was a 1.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jefferson L. Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the company'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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,325,502.53. This trade represents a 40.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of United Community Banks

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in United Community Banks by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,520,132 shares of the company's stock worth $205,315,000 after buying an additional 182,397 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of United Community Banks by 3,935.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,578,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $195,734,000 after buying an additional 5,439,820 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of United Community Banks by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,805,308 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,362,000 after acquiring an additional 124,347 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the second quarter valued at approximately $55,195,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth $48,450,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by 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.

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