United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate United Community Banks “Moderate Buy,” with four buy ratings, three holds, and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $38.80, above the stock’s reported $35.35 price.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.71, missing the $0.80 consensus estimate, on revenue of $279.28 million. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $2.93.
• United Community Banks pays a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, equivalent to a 2.8% yield, while institutional investors own 82.29% of the stock; two executives recently sold shares.

United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $38.80.

UCB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens raised their price objective on United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $37.00 target price on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Hovde Group decreased their target price on United Community Banks from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Community Banks from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total transaction of $49,968.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 83,228 shares in the company, valued at $2,920,470.52. This represents a 1.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jefferson L. Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.41, for a total transaction of $885,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,502.53. This represents a 40.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Community Banks

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks by 7.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 55,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,557,000 after acquiring an additional 3,617 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Community Banks by 176.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,530 shares of the company's stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 16,925 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of United Community Banks by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 71,211 shares of the company's stock worth $2,003,000 after purchasing an additional 3,115 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in United Community Banks in the 1st quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in United Community Banks in the 1st quarter valued at $204,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Community Banks Stock Down 0.5%

UCB stock opened at $35.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.82. United Community Banks has a 52 week low of $28.65 and a 52 week high of $37.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $34.83 and a 200 day moving average of $33.68.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $279.28 million for the quarter. United Community Banks had a net margin of 24.43% and a return on equity of 9.61%. Sell-side analysts forecast that United Community Banks will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. United Community Banks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.89%.

United Community Banks Company Profile

United Community Banks, Inc NYSE: UCB is a bank holding company headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. It operates primarily through its subsidiary, United Community Bank, providing a broad range of banking and financial services to individual, business and governmental customers. The company's core offerings include deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, treasury and cash management services, and wealth management.

In addition to traditional banking products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, United Community Bank specializes in commercial real estate financing, small business administration (SBA) loans, equipment financing and agricultural lending.

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