14,571 Shares in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) Bought by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new stake in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 14,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $471,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $450,141,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in United Community Banks during the fourth quarter worth $42,837,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new stake in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at $27,535,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the 4th quarter valued at $21,599,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth about $11,881,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Community Banks Price Performance

NASDAQ:UCB opened at $25.44 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 0.80. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.21 and a 12 month high of $35.38. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $29.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.79.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. United Community Banks’s payout ratio is currently 47.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO H Lynn Harton sold 31,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total value of $1,072,017.36. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sally Pope Davis acquired 1,800 shares of United Community Banks stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.19 per share, for a total transaction of $50,742.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $92,012.16. This represents a 122.95 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James raised shares of United Community Banks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Hovde Group upgraded United Community Banks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Monday.

About United Community Banks

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.