United Community Banks, Inc. (NYSE: UCB) announced the completion of a strategic balance sheet repositioning on September 8, 2026, following the sale of Navitas Credit Corp. and NLFC Reinsurance Corp. The sale of Navitas generated approximately $2.0 billion in proceeds. As part of the initiative, the company reclassified $2.2 billion in held-to-maturity investment securities to available-for-sale designation and sold approximately $2.6 billion of lower-yielding securities. These sold securities carried a weighted average yield of 2.20% and an average duration of approximately 5.5 years.
The company is initially redeploying the proceeds into cash and short-duration securities with an average yield of approximately 4.5% and an average duration of approximately 2 years. United expects to recognize an estimated pre-tax loss of approximately $300 million as a result of the repositioning, which will be partially offset by a $64 million pre-tax gain from the Navitas sale. Despite this non-recurring loss, the company projects a positive net income for the nine months ending September 30, 2026.
United maintains a robust capital position, reporting a proforma common equity tier one (CET1) ratio of approximately 14.5% following the sale of Navitas. The company projects that its CET1 ratio for the third quarter of 2026 will remain above 13% after giving effect to the balance sheet repositioning and the recent acquisition of Peach State Bancshares, Inc.
In addition to the balance sheet changes, the company authorized a $100 million increase to its share repurchase program on September 1, 2026, extending the authorization through December 31, 2027. As of September 1, 2026, $13 million remained outstanding under the program. United has repurchased $87 million in common shares in 2026, including $50 million in the third quarter, which offset dilution from the Peach State acquisition.
United continues to focus on organic growth, having increased its revenue producers by close to 20% over the past year. The company also evaluates low-risk, in-market acquisitions to build density in attractive markets. A conference call to discuss these strategic initiatives is scheduled for Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. ET.
