United Community Banks (NASDAQ:UCB) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 2,484,465 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 259% from the previous session’s volume of 691,633 shares.The stock last traded at $28.72 and had previously closed at $28.93.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UCB shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James upgraded shares of United Community Banks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Hovde Group decreased their price target on United Community Banks from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th.

United Community Banks Trading Down 0.4 %

The company’s 50-day moving average is $31.54 and its 200-day moving average is $31.07. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01 and a beta of 0.90.

United Community Banks Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. United Community Banks’s payout ratio is 47.06%.

Insider Activity at United Community Banks

In other news, CEO H Lynn Harton sold 31,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total transaction of $1,072,017.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 112,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,805,104.96. This represents a 21.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sally Pope Davis acquired 1,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.19 per share, with a total value of $50,742.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,012.16. This trade represents a 122.95 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Community Banks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in United Community Banks during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC acquired a new position in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Community Banks during the fourth quarter worth about $80,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.