United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.14.

UCB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of United Community Banks in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Hovde Group upgraded United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $31.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on United Community Banks from $38.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on United Community Banks from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Community Banks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UCB. Vanguard Group Inc. purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $450,141,000. FMR LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth $310,166,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth $195,766,000. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth $148,763,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth $113,536,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

United Community Banks Stock Performance

NASDAQ UCB traded up $0.07 on Thursday, hitting $29.24. 528,647 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 660,825. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $27.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.16. United Community Banks has a fifty-two week low of $22.93 and a fifty-two week high of $35.38. The firm has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 0.78.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Sunday, June 15th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. United Community Banks's payout ratio is currently 45.50%.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc operates as the financial holding company for United Community Bank that provides financial products and services to commercial, retail, government, education, energy, health care, and real estate sectors. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts.