United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on UBSI. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Bankshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on United Bankshares from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of United Bankshares in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on United Bankshares from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.67.

United Bankshares Trading Down 1.8%

UBSI opened at $40.36 on Thursday. United Bankshares has a one year low of $30.50 and a one year high of $45.92. The company has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.99. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.14.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $430.85 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that United Bankshares will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. United Bankshares’s payout ratio is currently 46.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Bankshares

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UBSI. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of United Bankshares during the fourth quarter worth $68,366,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in United Bankshares by 367.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,935,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,528,000 after buying an additional 1,521,864 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Bankshares by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,625,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,408,000 after acquiring an additional 694,953 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Bankshares by 75.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,177,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,199,000 after acquiring an additional 504,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of United Bankshares by 64.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 782,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,109,000 after acquiring an additional 307,159 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.80% of the company’s stock.

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.