State of Alaska Department of Revenue Purchases 6,237 Shares of United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) by 9.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 72,376 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,237 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in United Community Banks were worth $2,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in UCB. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $40,871,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $34,780,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the first quarter valued at about $16,721,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks by 149.3% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 886,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,944,000 after purchasing an additional 531,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of United Community Banks by 671.1% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 556,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,647,000 after purchasing an additional 484,094 shares in the last quarter. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Community Banks Price Performance

UCB opened at $31.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27 and a beta of 0.86. 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 50-day moving average price of $31.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.57. United Community Banks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.93 and a twelve month high of $35.38.

United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.05. United Community Banks had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 8.64%. United Community Banks’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that United Community Banks, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from United Community Banks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.45%.

Insider Activity at United Community Banks

In other news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,616 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.94, for a total value of $49,999.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 78,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,425,541.30. This trade represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UCB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Hovde Group raised their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.57.

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.