LPL Financial LLC Acquires New Position in United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

LPL Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 38,561 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,246,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in UCB. Swiss National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $7,573,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth about $3,243,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth about $3,050,000. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new position in United Community Banks during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,951,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. bought a new position in United Community Banks during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $11,881,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UCB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Hovde Group upgraded United Community Banks from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $31.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

United Community Banks Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of United Community Banks stock traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $27.15. The company had a trading volume of 91,946 shares, compared to its average volume of 670,293. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.22 and a 200 day moving average of $30.55. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.93 and a 52-week high of $35.38.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. United Community Banks's payout ratio is 47.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,527 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,220,902.72. The trade was a 2.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sally Pope Davis acquired 1,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.19 per share, with a total value of $50,742.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,264 shares in the company, valued at $92,012.16. This trade represents a 122.95 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.