United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Stock Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

United Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBSI)’s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $42.80 and traded as high as $47.11. United Bankshares shares last traded at $46.69, with a volume of 1,014,420 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UBSI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Bankshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of United Bankshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of United Bankshares from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of United Bankshares in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Hovde Group started coverage on shares of United Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Bankshares has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.60.

United Bankshares Stock Up 1.1%

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.80. The firm has a market cap of $6.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.08 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $316.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.15 million. United Bankshares had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 27.45%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Bankshares, Inc. will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

United Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. United Bankshares’s payout ratio is 42.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bankshares

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of United Bankshares by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,661,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $317,327,000 after purchasing an additional 56,808 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in United Bankshares by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,802,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $146,030,000 after purchasing an additional 183,950 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in United Bankshares during the 4th quarter valued at about $68,366,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in United Bankshares by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,631,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,593,000 after purchasing an additional 277,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in United Bankshares by 74.7% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,625,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,408,000 after buying an additional 694,953 shares during the last quarter. 70.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Bankshares

United Bankshares, Inc, headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia, is a bank holding company that provides a full range of financial services through its primary subsidiary, United Bank. The company’s core offerings include retail and commercial banking products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, personal and business loans, mortgages, and treasury management services. In addition, United Bankshares delivers private banking, wealth management, trust and fiduciary solutions, and investment advisory services to meet the needs of individual, corporate, and institutional clients.

United Bankshares operates an extensive branch network across West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina.