Bank of America Corp DE Grows Stock Position in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its United Community Banks stake by 27.6% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 747,576 shares valued at approximately $23.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.29% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.80, although the company’s latest quarterly EPS of $0.71 fell short of the $0.80 estimate.
• United Community Banks raised its quarterly dividend from $0.25 to $0.26 per share, representing an annualized payout of $1.04 and a yield of roughly 2.8%. Shares recently traded at $36.68.

Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB - Free Report) by 27.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 747,576 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 161,848 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.62% of United Community Banks worth $23,541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of United Community Banks by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 55,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,557,000 after acquiring an additional 3,617 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in United Community Banks by 176.2% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $746,000 after purchasing an additional 16,925 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of United Community Banks by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 71,211 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,003,000 after purchasing an additional 3,115 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the first quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the first quarter worth about $204,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of United Community Banks in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen raised shares of United Community Banks to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Community Banks from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One investment 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Community Banks has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $38.80.

Insider Transactions at United Community Banks

In other news, EVP Jefferson L. Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,325,502.53. This represents a 40.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the firm'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 83,228 shares in the company, valued at $2,920,470.52. This trade represents a 1.68% 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.

United Community Banks Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:UCB opened at $36.68 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.65 and a 12-month high of $37.18. The business has a 50 day moving average of $35.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.76. The company has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a PE ratio of 12.07 and a beta of 0.82.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $279.28 million for the quarter. As a group, analysts forecast that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This is a positive change from United Community Banks's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.89%.

United Community Banks Company Profile

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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