Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Sell"

Key Points

• Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB) has been downgraded from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen.
• The bank's recent earnings report revealed an EPS of $0.53 for the quarter, with a return on equity of 13.22%.
• Institutional investors, including Renaissance Technologies and Dimensional Fund Advisors, have increased their holdings in Union Bankshares recently.

Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday.

Union Bankshares Trading Up 0.9%

UNB stock traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $27.46. The stock had a trading volume of 501 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,997. The firm has a market cap of $124.67 million, a PE ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Union Bankshares has a 12-month low of $23.00 and a 12-month high of $37.70. The company's 50-day moving average price is $27.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.87.

Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The bank reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $13.20 million for the quarter. Union Bankshares had a net margin of 11.17% and a return on equity of 13.22%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Union Bankshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UNB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Union Bankshares by 34,520.0% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,731 shares of the bank's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,726 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund acquired a new position in Union Bankshares in the 2nd quarter worth $104,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Union Bankshares by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,225 shares of the bank's stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. acquired a new position in Union Bankshares in the 1st quarter worth $214,000. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in Union Bankshares in the 4th quarter worth $269,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.84% of the company's stock.

About Union Bankshares

Union Bankshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Union Bank that provides retail, commercial, and municipal banking products and services in northern Vermont and New Hampshire. It offers retail depository services, such as personal checking, savings, money market, IRA/SEP/KEOGH, and health savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.