Fact based stock research
First United (NasdaqGS:FUNC)

US33741H1077

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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

First United stock research in summary

mybank.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 61 (better than 61% compared with investment alternatives), First United (Regional Banks, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of First United are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 67 (better than 67% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 79) but are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 19), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 61, is a buy recommendation based on First United's financial characteristics. As the company First United's key financial metrics exhibit excellent performance in two areas, such as good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 67) and above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 79), it could be argued that the risk-taking in financing (Obermatt Safety Rank of only 19) indicates that the company is optimistic about the future and sees debt as an opportunity to boost returns. More debt means more shareholder returns if everything goes well. However, higher debt burdens are risky when interest rates rise or the business deteriorates in a crisis. If you believe the company's future is market-typical or even better, this could be an argument for a share purchase. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	67
Growth Rank	79
Safety Rank	19
Combined Rank	61

Country	USA
Industry	Regional Banks
Index	Dividends USA, Diversity USA, Sound Pay USA, NASDAQ
Size class	XX-Large

14-Nov-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

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Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: First United

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	98	100	97	67
GROWTH
GROWTH	42	9	83	79
SAFETY
SAFETY	73	65	70	19
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	62	45	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	67	94	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 14-Nov-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 30-Jun-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better First United is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	98	100	97	67
GROWTH
GROWTH	42	9	83	79
SAFETY
SAFETY	73	65	70	19
COMBINED
COMBINED	85	73	100	61

Last update of combined financial performance: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of First United the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 67 (better than 67% compared with alternatives), First United shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, where half the indicators are below and half are above average for First United. Price-to-Sales (P/S) is 83, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 83% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning First United's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits (or Price / Earnings, P/E), more favorable than for 89% of alternatives. It is also positive for expected dividend yields with a Dividend Yield rank of 33 (dividends are expected to be higher than for 33% of other stocks). But, compared with other companies in the same industry, the Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) is higher than average, making the stock more expensive. Only 54% of all competitors have an even higher price compared with book capital which puts the Price-to-Capital Rank for First United to 46. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 67, is a buy recommendation based on First United's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. A low level of book capital means that the company has a business that is leaner on assets than its competitors. For instance, the company could be leasing its production facilities, or be more focussed on intellectual property, such as its brand and software, which is less visible in its book capital. If that is the case, the low Dividend Yield is also explained as such companies tend to invest their income into market development. The other good value ranks for Sales and Profits are encouraging indicators for the stock price value. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	94	95	91	83
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	90	100	79	89
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	88	95	70	46
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	71	85	69	33
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	98	100	97	67

Last update of Value Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of First United; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 79 (better than 79% compared with alternatives) for 2024, First United shows one of the highest growth dynamics in its industry. Investors also speak of high momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for First United. Profit Growth has a rank of 84, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits more than 84% of its competitors. This is a good sign for shareholders, which is confirmed by an above-average Stock Returns rank of 100 (above 100% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has a below the median rank of 48, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 52% of its competitors, and Capital Growth also has a lower rank of 29. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 79, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Because revenues and invested capital are the more solid growth indicators, the positive development on the profit side is less relevant. It may have been caused by cost-cutting, which may be a negative growth indicator. Finally, the above-average stock returns recently are a thing of the past and not a good indicator of future returns. Investors should be confident that the cost-cutting initiative leading to higher profits is to benefit the company's future. If not, there is little growth momentum, and investment is only advisable if the Value Ranks suggest a good investment timing for First United. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	28	12	37	48
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	5	69	73	84
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	19	84	29
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	39	27	91	100
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	42	9	83	79

Last update of Growth Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of First United.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 19 (better than 19% compared with alternatives), the company First United has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of First United is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with just one indicator above average for First United. Liquidity is at 55, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 55% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is riskier at a rank of 41, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 59% of its competitors. Leverage is also high at a rank of 8, which means that the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 92% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 19 (worse than 81% compared with alternatives), First United has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. High Leverage (a low Obermatt Leverage Rank) is good in good times, because it usually indicates that shareholders get higher returns. The good Liquidity performance of the company is an indicator that this is the case. However, if you expect an economic downturn, you may stay clear of this stock because they have an above-average debt level that needs refinancing soon. If the company is sailing with good winds, as may be visible from the Growth and Sentiment performance, the refinancing risk may be lower than the low Refinancing rank suggests. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	35	90	63	8
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	1	37	44	41
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	26	25	70	55
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	73	65	70	19

Last update of Safety Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of First United and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	77	35	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	50	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	80	85	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	22	24	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	62	45	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for First United.
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