United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 13,000 shares, a growth of 41.3% from the February 13th total of 9,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 6,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UBCP. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in United Bancorp by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 40,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC lifted its position in United Bancorp by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 36,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 3,633 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in United Bancorp by 40.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 25,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 7,264 shares during the period. BBR Partners LLC acquired a new position in United Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $131,000. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in United Bancorp by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 42,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $547,000 after purchasing an additional 14,550 shares during the period. 15.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ UBCP opened at $13.18 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. United Bancorp has a 12-month low of $11.40 and a 12-month high of $15.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.30 million, a P/E ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 0.38.

United Bancorp (NASDAQ:UBCP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. United Bancorp had a net margin of 16.83% and a return on equity of 11.73%.

United Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.1825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from United Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.54%. United Bancorp’s payout ratio is 57.48%.

About United Bancorp

United Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Unified Bank that provides commercial and retail banking services in Ohio. The company provides range of banking and financial services, which includes accepting demand, savings, and time deposits. It also offers commercial, real estate and consumer loans.