UBS Group (NYSE:UBS) Sees Large Volume Increase - Here's What Happened

Shares of UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 2,444,778 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 17% from the previous session's volume of 2,095,099 shares.The stock last traded at $32.62 and had previously closed at $34.38.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on UBS shares. Kepler Capital Markets raised UBS Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of UBS Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of UBS Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of UBS Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded UBS Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold".

UBS Group Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $33.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.76, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $107.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.99 and a beta of 1.15.

UBS Group (NYSE:UBS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.08). UBS Group had a return on equity of 5.93% and a net margin of 6.93%. The firm had revenue of $11.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.09) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that UBS Group AG will post 1.9 EPS for the current year.

UBS Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from UBS Group's previous annual dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group's payout ratio is presently 19.08%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UBS Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UBS Group by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC now owns 117,613 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,566,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of UBS Group by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 65,889 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,998,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of UBS Group by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,528 shares of the bank's stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in shares of UBS Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 85,975 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of UBS Group by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 11,247 shares of the bank's stock worth $341,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter.

UBS Group Company Profile

UBS Group AG provides financial advice and solutions to private, institutional, and corporate clients worldwide. It operates through five divisions: Global Wealth Management, Personal & Corporate Banking, Asset Management, Investment Bank, and Non-core and Legacy. The company offers investment advice, estate and wealth planning, investing, corporate and banking, and investment management, as well as mortgage, securities-based, and structured lending solutions.