Teacher Retirement System of Texas Acquires Shares of 19,148 United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 19,148 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $539,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Community Banks during the fourth quarter worth about $80,000. Swiss National Bank acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $7,573,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $498,000. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $362,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Community Banks Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of United Community Banks stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $31.70. 756,713 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 663,374. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.54 and a beta of 0.78. United Community Banks, Inc. has a one year low of $22.93 and a one year high of $35.38. The company has a 50-day moving average of $29.63 and a 200 day moving average of $29.62.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Sunday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. United Community Banks's payout ratio is presently 45.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UCB. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson cut their target price on United Community Banks from $38.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Hovde Group upgraded United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $32.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Community Banks presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.14.

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.