United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) Short Interest Up 23.8% in January

United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,800 shares, an increase of 23.8% from the December 31st total of 6,300 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 7,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BBR Partners LLC acquired a new stake in United Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $131,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of United Bancorp by 8.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 33,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $419,000 after buying an additional 2,575 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Bancorp by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 42,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $547,000 after buying an additional 14,550 shares in the last quarter. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in United Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $584,000. Finally, Commonwealth Financial Services LLC grew its stake in United Bancorp by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 90,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares in the last quarter. 15.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of United Bancorp stock traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $12.51. The company had a trading volume of 2,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,777. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.79. The stock has a market cap of $72.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.07 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. United Bancorp has a 12-month low of $11.40 and a 12-month high of $15.50.

United Bancorp (NASDAQ:UBCP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $11.16 million for the quarter. United Bancorp had a net margin of 18.28% and a return on equity of 12.56%.

United Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This is a positive change from United Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. United Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.17%.

United Bancorp Company Profile

United Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Unified Bank that provides commercial and retail banking services in Ohio. The company provides range of banking and financial services, which includes accepting demand, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial, real estate and consumer loans.