United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Thursday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on UBSI. Stephens upped their price objective on United Bankshares from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. DA Davidson increased their price target 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of United Bankshares from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $40.25.

United Bankshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ UBSI opened at $36.79 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.97 billion, a PE ratio of 14.04 and a beta of 0.99. United Bankshares has a 1 year low of $25.35 and a 1 year high of $39.93. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

United Bankshares (NASDAQ:UBSI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.07. United Bankshares had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 22.44%. The company had revenue of $255.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $255.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. United Bankshares’s revenue was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict 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 will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.02%. United Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Bankshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UBSI. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in United Bankshares by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,202,951 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $533,321,000 after purchasing an additional 71,359 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in United Bankshares by 1.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,907,665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,521,000 after buying an additional 142,545 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in United Bankshares by 1.8% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in United Bankshares by 1.4% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,982,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $129,192,000 after buying an additional 55,633 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in United Bankshares by 110.4% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,206,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,157,579 shares in the last quarter. 70.80% of the stock is owned by 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.