United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of United Bankshares from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of United Bankshares from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on shares of United Bankshares from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Bankshares currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.25.

United Bankshares Stock Down 2.9 %

UBSI opened at $41.34 on Tuesday. United Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $29.19 and a fifty-two week high of $42.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.66 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $37.39 and its 200 day moving average is $35.38.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.03. United Bankshares had a return on equity of 7.58% and a net margin of 22.05%. The business had revenue of $414.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $260.30 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that United Bankshares will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. United Bankshares’s payout ratio is 56.06%.

Insider Activity at United Bankshares

In other United Bankshares news, Director Peter A. Converse sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 434,769 shares in the company, valued at $17,390,760. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 3.66% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bankshares

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UBSI. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of United Bankshares by 218.2% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 29,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 20,350 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of United Bankshares by 77.8% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 69,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 30,590 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of United Bankshares by 37.7% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 51,455 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,811,000 after purchasing an additional 14,080 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new position in United Bankshares during the 1st quarter worth $901,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in United Bankshares by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,253,797 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,993,000 after buying an additional 74,638 shares during the last quarter. 70.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Bankshares

United Bankshares, Inc, through its subsidiaries, primarily provides commercial and retail banking products and services in the United States. It operates through two segments, Community Banking and Mortgage Banking. The company accepts checking, savings, and time and money market accounts; individual retirement accounts; and demand deposits, statement and special savings, and NOW accounts.