Connable Office Inc. Purchases New Stake in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

Key Points

• Connable Office Inc. has purchased 16,651 shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) valued at approximately $468,000, reflecting significant interest from institutional investors.
• United Community Banks recently reported earnings of $0.66 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, yielding a 3.2% return.
• Analysts have revised their price targets for UCB, with several firms setting targets as high as $36.00 while the average rating remains at "Hold".

Connable Office Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 16,651 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $468,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth about $460,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in United Community Banks during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,773,000. US Bancorp DE acquired a new stake in United Community Banks during the 1st quarter worth approximately $436,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Finally, CAP Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the first quarter valued at approximately $536,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target 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. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of United Community Banks in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their target price on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.94, for a total value of $49,999.04. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 78,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,425,541.30. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Community Banks Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:UCB traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $29.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 270,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 726,634. United Community Banks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.93 and a twelve month high of $35.38. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $30.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.56. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.55 and a beta of 0.83.

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 8.64% and a net margin of 16.48%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. United Community Banks's payout ratio is 43.64%.

United Community Banks 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.