Vestcor Inc Acquires New Position in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc acquired 8,470 shares of United Community Banks, Inc. for approximately $238,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• Analysts have recently upgraded their target prices for United Community Banks, with several firms setting a new target of $36.00 and a consensus rating of "Hold."
• The company reported a $0.66 EPS in its latest quarterly earnings, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.61, along with a 6.1% year-over-year revenue increase.

Vestcor Inc acquired a new stake in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 8,470 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $238,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in United Community Banks in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth about $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UCB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. 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 research report on Monday, July 28th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of United Community Banks in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $34.57.

United Community Banks Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:UCB traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $29.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 136,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 725,798. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $30.08 and its 200 day moving average price 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. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.93 and a 52 week high of $35.38. The company has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.54 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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.05. United Community Banks had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 8.64%. The firm's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.64%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 78,395 shares in the company, valued at $2,425,541.30. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

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.