Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Makes New Investment in United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Key Points

• Vaughan Nelson Investment Management disclosed a new first-quarter stake in United Community Banks, buying 1,085,525 shares valued at about $34.2 million, or roughly 0.91% of the company.
• United Community Banks reported Q1 earnings of $0.70 per share, matching analyst expectations, while revenue rose 11.6% year over year to $278.26 million.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share payable July 3, and analysts currently rate the stock Moderate Buy with an average price target of $38.40.

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,085,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,183,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned approximately 0.91% of United Community Banks as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in United Community Banks during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. First Horizon Corp increased its position in United Community Banks by 51.7% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

United Community Banks Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE UCB opened at $33.35 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.26 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $33.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.91. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $27.70 and a 52 week high of $36.77.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70. United Community Banks had a net margin of 22.05% and a return on equity of 9.65%. The company had revenue of $278.26 million during the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. The company's revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued 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 currently 36.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on UCB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Zacks Research lowered United Community Banks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. DA Davidson increased their target price on United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded United Community Banks from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, United Community Banks currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Community Banks

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,510 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 84,497 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,796,005.73. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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