First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) Shares Purchased by Marshall Wace LLP

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC - Free Report) by 218.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,146 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 16,574 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.37% of First United worth $814,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC acquired a new position in shares of First United in the third quarter worth about $126,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of First United by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 20,786 shares of the bank's stock valued at $701,000 after purchasing an additional 5,374 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in First United by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 24,893 shares of the bank's stock worth $839,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180 shares during the period. Angel Oak Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in First United during the fourth quarter worth approximately $934,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in First United by 31.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 15,440 shares of the bank's stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 3,683 shares during the period. 33.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First United Price Performance

FUNC stock traded up $0.44 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $31.11. The stock had a trading volume of 5,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,486. First United Co. has a twelve month low of $19.17 and a twelve month high of $42.50. The company's 50-day moving average price is $30.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $201.38 million, a P/E ratio of 9.83 and a beta of 0.59.

First United (NASDAQ:FUNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.09. First United had a return on equity of 12.51% and a net margin of 18.45%. The firm had revenue of $20.84 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.63 million. As a group, research analysts predict that First United Co. will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First United Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. First United's payout ratio is 25.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered First United from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. Raymond James raised shares of First United from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $42.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th.

First United Company Profile

First United Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First United Bank & Trust that provides various retail and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals. It offers various deposit products, which includes checking, savings, money market deposit, and regular and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), as well as certificates of deposit.