First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on First United from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Hovde Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $49.00 price target on shares of First United in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First United in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $49.50.

First United Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FUNC opened at $44.57 on Friday. First United has a one year low of $31.71 and a one year high of $46.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $287.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.55 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91.

First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $23.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.55 million. First United had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 20.05%. On average, analysts predict that First United will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

First United Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. First United’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First United

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of First United by 126.8% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 896 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in First United in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in First United by 102.1% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,524 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new stake in First United in the second quarter valued at $102,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund acquired a new stake in First United in the second quarter valued at $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.27% of the company’s stock.

About First United

First United Corporation is a bank holding company that, through its subsidiary First United Bank & Trust, provides a full suite of commercial and consumer banking services to individuals, businesses, and agricultural customers across central Oklahoma. The company offers deposit accounts such as checking, savings, money market and time deposits, alongside a variety of lending solutions covering commercial real estate, construction, agricultural and consumer loans.

In addition to traditional banking products, First United delivers treasury management and cash management solutions designed to streamline client operations, as well as online and mobile banking platforms for account access and payments.