United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) Cut to Market Perform at Hovde Group

Hovde Group cut shares of United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report issued on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $38.00 price target on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Stephens boosted their price target on United Community Banks from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on United Community Banks from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.00.

United Community Banks Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE UCB opened at $35.00 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.84. United Community Banks has a 1 year low of $22.93 and a 1 year high of $36.77. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.02). United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 21.35%.The company had revenue of $278.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $273.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

United Community Banks announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 8th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Alan H. Kumler sold 12,043 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.36, for a total transaction of $425,840.48. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 21,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $745,954.56. This trade represents a 36.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Community Banks

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UCB. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in United Community Banks in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks by 213.8% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 714 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in United Community Banks by 196.1% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares during the period. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in United Community Banks in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.