United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB Shares Sold by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings cut its United Community Banks stake by 79.8% in the second quarter, selling 91,671 shares and retaining 23,225 shares valued at approximately $823,000. Institutional investors overall own 82.29% of UCB.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with UCB carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $39.40 versus its opening price of $35.30.
• United Community Banks raised its quarterly dividend to $0.26 per share, implying a $1.04 annualized payout and a 2.9% yield. Separately, the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.71, below the $0.80 analyst consensus.

Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB - Free Report) by 79.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,225 shares of the company's stock after selling 91,671 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in United Community Banks were worth $823,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,955 shares of the company's stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of United Community Banks by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,894 shares of the company's stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its holdings in United Community Banks by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 17,808 shares of the company's stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in United Community Banks by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 11,761 shares of the company's stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in United Community Banks by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,880 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 83,228 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,920,470.52. The trade was a 1.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jefferson L. Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.41, for a total value of $885,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,502.53. The trade was a 40.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UCB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on United Community Banks from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. DA Davidson upped their price objective on United Community Banks from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of United Community Banks to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $39.40.

United Community Banks Stock Performance

UCB stock opened at $35.30 on Monday. United Community Banks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $28.65 and a twelve month high of $37.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.81. The business's fifty day moving average is $35.58 and its 200-day moving average is $33.81.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last announced 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 company had revenue of $279.28 million for the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.98 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from United Community Banks's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc is the bank holding company for United Community Bank, a regional financial institution headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. Founded in 1950, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions across the Southeastern United States.

United Community Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, business loans, mortgages, treasury management and other financial services.

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