Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Purchases Shares of 42,190 United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc acquired a new position in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 42,190 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,363,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UCB. Bank of Montreal Can bought a new position in United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at about $508,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth $10,686,000. Northern Trust Corp bought a new stake in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at $45,527,000. Swiss National Bank acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at $7,573,000. Finally, Corebridge Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,057,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sally Pope Davis bought 1,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.19 per share, with a total value of $50,742.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,264 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,012.16. This trade represents a 122.95% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.43% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UCB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Hovde Group raised United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $32.00 to $31.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on United Community Banks from $38.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $33.14.

United Community Banks Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ UCB traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $28.57. The stock had a trading volume of 42,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 661,845. The firm has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.98 and a beta of 0.75. United Community Banks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.93 and a fifty-two week high of $35.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $27.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.53.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.50%.

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. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts.