First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $26.18 and traded as high as $34.75. First United shares last traded at $34.62, with a volume of 21,864 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised First United from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th.

First United Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $223.99 million, a PE ratio of 14.07 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a 50 day moving average of $31.00 and a 200 day moving average of $26.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.10. First United had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The firm had revenue of $28.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.30 million. As a group, research analysts predict that First United Co. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

First United Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.54%. This is a positive change from First United’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. First United’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.77%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First United

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FUNC. Fourthstone LLC lifted its position in First United by 30.0% during the third quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 441,143 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,164,000 after buying an additional 101,915 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in First United by 283.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 38,725 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $886,000 after acquiring an additional 28,619 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in First United by 7.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 372,330 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,603,000 after acquiring an additional 24,457 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new stake in First United in the third quarter worth about $460,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of First United during the first quarter valued at approximately $298,000. 33.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First United

First United Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First United Bank & Trust that provides various retail and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals. It offers various deposit products, which includes checking, savings, money market deposit, and regular and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), as well as certificates of deposit.