United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) Short Interest Up 23.8% in December

United Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBCP) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,800 shares, a growth of 23.8% from the December 15th total of 6,300 shares. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.0 days.

United Bancorp Price Performance

United Bancorp stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $12.87. The stock had a trading volume of 843 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,644. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.33 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. United Bancorp has a 1-year low of $11.40 and a 1-year high of $15.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $13.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.75.

United Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.59%. This is a boost from United Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. United Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new stake in United Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $584,000. BBR Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $131,000. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of United Bancorp by 1.1% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 90,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in United Bancorp by 8.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 33,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 2,575 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 15.42% of the company’s stock.

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.