Prudential Financial Inc. Acquires Shares of 121,536 United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB)

Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCB) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 121,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,985,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $80,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,050,000. Swiss National Bank purchased a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter worth $7,573,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new stake in United Community Banks in the fourth quarter valued at $273,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC purchased a new position in United Community Banks during the 4th quarter valued at $498,000. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sally Pope Davis bought 1,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.19 per share, with a total value of $50,742.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $92,012.16. The trade was a 122.95 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.72, for a total value of $49,963.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 67,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,220,902.72. The trade was a 2.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Community Banks Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ UCB opened at $27.73 on Wednesday. United Community Banks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.00 and a 1 year high of $35.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $31.18 and a 200 day moving average of $31.07. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59 and a beta of 0.90.

United Community Banks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UCB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Hovde Group dropped their target price on shares of United Community Banks from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on United Community Banks from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James upgraded 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.

United Community Banks Company Profile

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.