Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Unity Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNTY) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $50.39 and last traded at $50.23, with a volume of 7867 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.92.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UNTY shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price objective (up previously from $51.00) on shares of Unity Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. StockNews.com downgraded Unity Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up previously from $53.00) on shares of Unity Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 16th.

Unity Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $506.94 million, a PE ratio of 12.48 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.51.

Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.05. Unity Bancorp had a net margin of 25.24% and a return on equity of 15.08%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Unity Bancorp, Inc. will post 4.83 EPS for the current year.

Unity Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Unity Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP James Joseph Donovan sold 1,080 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.88, for a total transaction of $52,790.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,178. This represents a 17.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP David G. Bove sold 4,167 shares of Unity Bancorp stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.78, for a total transaction of $194,932.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,837 shares in the company, valued at $460,174.86. This represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,747 shares of company stock worth $741,363 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 28.88% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Unity Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UNTY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Unity Bancorp by 79.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 88,231 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,005,000 after acquiring an additional 39,033 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unity Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $845,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Unity Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $623,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Unity Bancorp by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 40,102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,749,000 after purchasing an additional 10,167 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in Unity Bancorp by 93.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 6,846 shares during the last quarter. 42.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Unity Bancorp

Unity Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for Unity Bank that provides range of commercial and retail banking services to individuals, small and medium sized businesses, and professional communities. It offers personal and business checking accounts, time deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, and retirement accounts, as well as noninterest and interest-bearing demand deposits.