Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY) Director Sells 470 Shares of Company Stock

Key Points

• Director Peter Maricondo sold 470 Unity Bancorp shares at an average price of $56.25, receiving $26,437.50. He retained 49,943 shares after the transaction, a 0.93% reduction in his ownership.
• Unity Bancorp’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.51 versus the $1.49 consensus and revenue of $36.65 million versus estimates of $35.63 million.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share, equivalent to an annualized $0.68 payout and a 1.2% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with a $65.50 price target.

Unity Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNTY - Get Free Report) Director Peter Maricondo sold 470 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.25, for a total value of $26,437.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 49,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,809,293.75. This represents a 0.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Unity Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UNTY traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $57.76. The company had a trading volume of 11,725 shares, compared to its average volume of 54,502. Unity Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $44.34 and a 12 month high of $62.50. The firm has a market cap of $580.12 million, a P/E ratio of 9.56 and a beta of 0.65. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $57.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17.

Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $36.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.63 million. Unity Bancorp had a net margin of 31.00% and a return on equity of 16.34%. As a group, analysts predict that Unity Bancorp, Inc. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unity Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. This is a boost from Unity Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Unity Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 11.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unity Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Unity Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in Unity Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $92,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in Unity Bancorp by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 3,391 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Unity Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $213,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Unity Bancorp by 1,798.0% during the 1st quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 4,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 4,405 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.31% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on UNTY shares. Freedom Capital raised Unity Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Unity Bancorp from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Unity Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Unity Bancorp from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.50.

About Unity Bancorp

Unity Bancorp, Inc is the bank holding company for Unity Bank, a community-focused financial institution headquartered in Clinton, New Jersey. The bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations through locations primarily serving central New Jersey.

Unity Bank offers a range of deposit products, including checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, as well as consumer, residential mortgage and commercial lending.

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