Norges Bank Makes New $48.45 Million Investment in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Key Points

• Norges Bank disclosed a new position in United Community Banks, buying 1,551,895 shares worth about $48.45 million and ending the quarter with roughly 1.28% ownership.
• United Community Banks reported Q1 earnings of $0.70 per share, matching analyst expectations, while revenue rose 11.6% year over year to $278.27 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share and has a consensus analyst rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $38.40.

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,551,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,450,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.28% of United Community Banks at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in United Community Banks by 196.1% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 992 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. First Horizon Corp raised its stake in United Community Banks by 51.7% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in United Community Banks by 130.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth about $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,510 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.09, for a total value of $49,965.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 84,497 shares in the company, valued at $2,796,005.73. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company's stock.

United Community Banks Price Performance

NYSE:UCB opened at $33.32 on Monday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $32.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.68. The firm has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. United Community Banks, Inc. has a one year low of $27.23 and a one year high of $36.77.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 22.05%.The business had revenue of $278.27 million during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.58 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio is 36.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Hovde Group lowered their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Stephens lifted their target price on United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded United Community Banks from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $39.00 price target on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Community Banks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $38.40.

United Community Banks 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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