United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $36.77 and last traded at $36.8820, with a volume of 82167 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $36.00.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on UCB. DA Davidson lifted their price target on United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Stephens raised their target price on United Community Banks from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on United Community Banks from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded United Community Banks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised United Community Banks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $36.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.40.

United Community Banks Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.30. The stock has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The company had revenue of $278.26 million during the quarter. United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 22.05%.The business’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. United Community Banks’s payout ratio is currently 36.76%.

Insider Transactions at United Community Banks

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,510 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.09, for a total transaction of $49,965.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 84,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,796,005.73. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Community Banks

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UCB. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of United Community Banks by 196.1% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 992 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. First Horizon Corp raised its holdings in shares of United Community Banks by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

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.