Vanguard Group Inc. Increases Stake in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCBI)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCBI) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,552,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 274,275 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.38% of United Community Banks worth $396,560,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in United Community Banks by 85.2% in the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 157,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,616,000 after purchasing an additional 72,582 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in United Community Banks by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,913,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,633,000 after purchasing an additional 337,102 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $346,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of United Community Banks by 9.9% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 20,697 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $526,000 after buying an additional 1,870 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $203,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Community Banks Trading Up 1.3 %

United Community Banks stock opened at $25.20 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $25.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.62. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.63 and a 12 month high of $30.75. The company has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.36 and a beta of 0.92.

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCBI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.02. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 8.02% and a net margin of 13.62%. The company had revenue of $225.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $232.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. United Community Banks’s revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 15th will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio is 59.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on UCBI shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on United Community Banks from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on United Community Banks from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.60.

United Community Banks Company Profile

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.