Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 30,280 Shares of United Community Banks, Inc. $UCB

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its holdings in United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE:UCB) by 20.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 119,154 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30,280 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in United Community Banks were worth $3,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Everhart Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in United Community Banks by 15.0% during the third quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 18,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $566,000 after acquiring an additional 2,355 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of United Community Banks by 3.1% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 35,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,127,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in United Community Banks by 82.4% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 122,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,844,000 after buying an additional 55,402 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the 3rd quarter worth $248,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Community Banks by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Community Banks news, CAO Alan H. Kumler sold 12,043 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.36, for a total transaction of $425,840.48. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 21,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $745,954.56. The trade was a 36.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

United Community Banks Stock Up 1.4%

UCB stock opened at $36.58 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $32.94 and a 200 day moving average of $31.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 14.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.93 and a 52 week high of $36.77.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.02). United Community Banks had a net margin of 21.35% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company had revenue of $278.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $273.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

United Community Banks declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, December 8th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on UCB. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Community Banks in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of United Community Banks from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Zacks Research raised shares of United Community Banks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of United Community Banks from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Community Banks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.50.

United Community Banks Profile

United Community Banks, Inc (NYSE: UCB) is a bank holding company headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. It operates primarily through its subsidiary, United Community Bank, providing a broad range of banking and financial services to individual, business and governmental customers. The company’s core offerings include deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, treasury and cash management services, and wealth management.

In addition to traditional banking products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, United Community Bank specializes in commercial real estate financing, small business administration (SBA) loans, equipment financing and agricultural lending.