United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on UBSI. Stephens increased their price objective on United Bankshares from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Bankshares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of United Bankshares from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of United Bankshares in a research report on Monday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.67.

United Bankshares Stock Performance

United Bankshares stock opened at $43.98 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.18 billion, a PE ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $39.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.88. United Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $30.50 and a fifty-two week high of $44.11.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. United Bankshares had a return on equity of 8.60% and a net margin of 25.51%.The business had revenue of $430.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $315.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that United Bankshares will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

United Bankshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th. This is a positive change from United Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. United Bankshares’s payout ratio is 46.48%.

Institutional Trading of United Bankshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Bankshares during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of United Bankshares by 261.8% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Bankshares by 655.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in shares of United Bankshares by 174.8% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 838 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.80% of the company’s stock.

United Bankshares Company Profile

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.