Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Union Bankshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ UNB opened at $35.60 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $30.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.26. The stock has a market cap of $161.09 million, a PE ratio of 18.26 and a beta of 0.78. Union Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $21.00 and a fifty-two week high of $37.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Union Bankshares (NASDAQ:UNB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Union Bankshares had a net margin of 11.74% and a return on equity of 13.14%.

Union Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, October 26th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 25th. Union Bankshares’s payout ratio is 73.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Union Bankshares by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 14,032 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Union Bankshares by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 40,503 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Union Bankshares by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 30,924 shares of the bank’s stock worth $664,000 after purchasing an additional 2,914 shares during the last quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Bankshares during the third quarter worth about $220,000. Finally, Cardinal Capital Management lifted its position in Union Bankshares by 15.1% during the third quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 74,413 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,930,000 after buying an additional 9,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.84% of the company’s stock.

About Union Bankshares

Union Bankshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Union Bank that provides retail, commercial, and municipal banking products and services in northern Vermont and New Hampshire. It offers retail depository services, such as personal checking, savings, money market, IRA/SEP/KEOGH, and health savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.