Hovde Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB) Stock Price

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB) had its price target decreased by Hovde Group from $36.00 to $32.00 in a research report report published on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. Hovde Group currently has a market perform rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James raised shares of United Community Banks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th.

United Community Banks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UCB opened at $27.94 on Thursday. United Community Banks has a fifty-two week low of $26.00 and a fifty-two week high of $35.38. The stock has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.07.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Community Banks news, CEO H Lynn Harton sold 31,679 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total transaction of $1,072,017.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 112,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,805,104.96. This trade represents a 21.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,527 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.72, for a total transaction of $49,963.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,220,902.72. This represents a 2.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Community Banks

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,602,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $666,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $247,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, GTS Securities LLC purchased a new position in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $220,000. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

United Community Banks Company 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.