Rafferty Asset Management LLC Trims Stock Position in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in United Community Banks by 10.2%, now holding approximately 0.08% of the company valued at $2.81 million.
• Other notable hedge funds, such as Jane Street Group LLC and MetLife Investment Management LLC, increased their stakes significantly, with Jane Street's position rising by 655.3% to over $11 million.
• United Community Banks recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.25, reflecting a positive change in financial outlook with a yield of 3.0%.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,759 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,280 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.08% of United Community Banks worth $2,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of United Community Banks by 5.8% during the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 9,094 shares of the company's stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth $37,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of the business's 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 directly owned 78,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,425,541.30. The trade was a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UCB has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Community Banks has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $34.57.

United Community Banks Stock Down 0.9%

UCB stock traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $33.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 474,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 708,402. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.93 and a 52-week high of $35.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.23 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.33.

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is an increase from United Community Banks's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.45%.

United Community Banks Company 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.