Hovde Group Issues Positive Forecast for United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Stock Price

Key Points

• Hovde Group raised its price target on United Bankshares to $50 from $49 and kept a market perform rating, implying about 5.6% upside from the current share price.
• The stock has received mixed analyst sentiment overall, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $46.80, even as some firms recently upgraded or reaffirmed bullish views.
• United Bankshares reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.95 versus estimates of $0.89 and revenue of $323.82 million; the stock was also up about 1% and was trading near its 52-week high.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities researchers at Hovde Group from $49.00 to $50.00 in a research note issued on Friday. The firm presently has a "market perform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Hovde Group's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 5.57% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on UBSI. Wall Street Zen cut United Bankshares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of United Bankshares in a report on Monday, July 6th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on United Bankshares from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded United Bankshares from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.80.

United Bankshares Stock Up 1.0%

UBSI stock opened at $47.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 0.71. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $44.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.17. United Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $34.10 and a fifty-two week high of $48.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.06. United Bankshares had a net margin of 27.45% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The firm had revenue of $323.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $320.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Bankshares will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bankshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UBSI. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in United Bankshares during the 2nd quarter valued at $351,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Bankshares during the 2nd quarter valued at $226,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of United Bankshares by 21.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,867 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $177,000 after buying an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of United Bankshares by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of United Bankshares by 20.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,631,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $67,593,000 after buying an additional 277,836 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.80% of the company's stock.

About United Bankshares

United Bankshares, Inc, headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia, is a bank holding company that provides a full range of financial services through its primary subsidiary, United Bank. The company's core offerings include retail and commercial banking products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, personal and business loans, mortgages, and treasury management services. In addition, United Bankshares delivers private banking, wealth management, trust and fiduciary solutions, and investment advisory services to meet the needs of individual, corporate, and institutional clients.

United Bankshares operates an extensive branch network across West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina.

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