Nuveen LLC Makes New $519,000 Investment in Unity Bancorp, Inc. $UNTY

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Unity Bancorp, buying 12,750 shares valued at approximately $519,000, representing about 0.13% of the company's stock.
• Unity Bancorp recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.15 per share from $0.14, reflecting a 1.1% dividend yield.
• The company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, and had a strong return on equity of 15.34%.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Unity Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNTY - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 12,750 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $519,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.13% of Unity Bancorp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unity Bancorp by 122.5% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 612 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Unity Bancorp by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 33,020 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,344,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in Unity Bancorp by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,511 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $371,000 after purchasing an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Unity Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in Unity Bancorp by 25.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 4,159 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $181,000 after acquiring an additional 852 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNTY has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Unity Bancorp from $55.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Unity Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.50.

Unity Bancorp Stock Up 0.9%

UNTY traded up $0.48 on Wednesday, hitting $52.54. 19,207 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 27,514. Unity Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.44 and a 12 month high of $54.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock's fifty day moving average is $50.87 and its 200-day moving average is $45.87. The company has a market cap of $526.98 million, a PE ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.79.

Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.30 million. Unity Bancorp had a net margin of 28.72% and a return on equity of 15.34%. Equities research analysts predict that Unity Bancorp, Inc. will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unity Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a boost from Unity Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Unity Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.15%.

Unity Bancorp Company Profile

Unity Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for Unity Bank that provides range of commercial and retail banking services to individuals, small and medium sized businesses, and professional communities. It offers personal and business checking accounts, time deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, and retirement accounts, as well as noninterest and interest-bearing demand deposits.