United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) Short Interest Update

United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 13,000 shares, an increase of 41.3% from the February 13th total of 9,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s shares are short sold.

United Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of United Bancorp stock opened at $12.83 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $74.27 million, a PE ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 0.38. United Bancorp has a 12-month low of $11.40 and a 12-month high of $15.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.01.

United Bancorp (NASDAQ:UBCP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. United Bancorp had a net margin of 16.83% and a return on equity of 11.73%.

United Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.1825 dividend. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from United Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. United Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $258,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of United Bancorp by 40.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 25,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 7,264 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of United Bancorp by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 40,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC lifted its position in shares of United Bancorp by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 36,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 3,633 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Bancorp by 52.9% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 42,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $547,000 after purchasing an additional 14,550 shares during the period. 15.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Bancorp Company Profile

United Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Unified Bank that provides commercial and retail banking services in Ohio. The company provides range of banking and financial services, which includes accepting demand, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial, real estate and consumer loans.