United Bankshares Inc

United Bankshares has increased its annual dividend to $1.52 per share from $1.48, extending its streak of consecutive annual dividend increases to 52 years. The company says only one other major U.S. banking company has matched that record. At a recent share price of roughly $47.81, the new dividend implies a yield of approximately 3.2%. United reported record second-quarter 2026 earnings of $131.4 million, up from $124.2 million in the first quarter, with diluted EPS of $0.95 against a $0.38 quarterly dividend, resulting in a payout ratio of about 40%. The company also returned capital through roughly $53 million of dividends and $69 million of share repurchases during the first quarter of 2026.

United Bankshares announced a new plan to repurchase up to 6.8 million shares, representing about 5% of its issued and outstanding common stock. The company said it may buy back shares from time to time through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, or other means. The timing, price, and quantity of purchases will be at the discretion of management.

United Bankshares reported second quarter 2026 net income of US$131.38 million, lower net charge offs, and the completion of a multi-quarter share repurchase program. The stock trades at US$47.36 with a year-to-date return of 23.37% and a one-year total shareholder return of 34.40%. Its price-to-earnings ratio of 12.9x sits above the US banks industry average of 12.1x but below a peer average of 15.6x, while a Simply Wall St discounted cash flow model estimates fair value at US$67.07, implying the shares trade about 29.4% below that estimate. Profit grew 36.2% over the past year and net profit margins reached 40.9%, though return on equity of 9.2% remains low relative to a 20% benchmark.

Shares of several regional banks jumped in afternoon trading after softer-than-expected inflation data cooled expectations for further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. United Bankshares rose 2.8%, Fulton Financial gained 2.6%, Home Bancshares climbed 4.8%, First Busey advanced 3.4%, and Enterprise Financial Services added 3.2%. The moves followed a June CPI reading of 3.5% and lower-than-expected producer prices, which bolstered investor confidence that inflationary pressures may be easing. Strong second-quarter earnings from major financial institutions also offered a bullish read-through for smaller lenders by showing stabilized net interest income and contained credit-loss provisions. The State Street S&P Regional Banking ETF has been trading near its 2026 highs as the sector navigates a busy earnings season.

United Bankshares, the Charleston-based holding company for United Bank, currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, yielding 3.38%. That yield exceeds the 2.03% average for the Banks - Southeast industry and the S&P 500's 1.44%. The company's annualized dividend of $1.52 is up 2% from last year, and it has raised its dividend twice over the past five years for an average annual increase of 1.39%. With a payout ratio of 43% and a Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings of $3.64 per share, representing 11.31% year-over-year growth, the stock carries a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).