Caxton Associates LLP Buys Shares of 25,667 United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 25,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $722,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $37,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $62,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UCB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Community Banks currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.94, for a total value of $49,999.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 78,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,425,541.30. This trade represents a 2.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

United Community Banks Price Performance

NASDAQ:UCB opened at $32.53 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $31.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.38. The firm has a market cap of $3.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.94 and a beta of 0.86. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.93 and a 52-week high of $35.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 8.64% and a net margin of 16.48%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from United Community Banks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.45%.

United Community Banks 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.