United Security Bancshares (UBFO): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

When you look at a regional player like United Security Bancshares (UBFO), do you see a small-cap stock or a strategically positioned community bank generating consistent returns? As of the third quarter of 2025, this Fresno, California-based holding company reported total assets of over $1.24 billion and a net income of $4.0 million for the quarter, reflecting a clear focus on core lending activities. The bank's net interest margin climbed to 4.35%, plus they saw a solid $30.0 million growth in loans since the end of 2024, so understanding how they make money-primarily through interest income from commercial loans-is defintely key to assessing its value.

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) History

You want to understand the foundation of United Security Bancshares (UBFO), and that starts with its community bank roots. The holding company you see trading on the Nasdaq today is the product of a nearly four-decade evolution, starting as a single-branch operation focused on California's Central Valley.

Given Company's Founding Timeline

Year established

The operating entity, United Security Bank, was formed on December 21, 1987. The bank holding company, United Security Bancshares, was established later in 2001 to oversee the bank's operations and facilitate strategic growth and capital management.

Original location

The company is headquartered in Fresno, California, a location that remains central to its operational and strategic focus across the Central Valley.

Founding team members

While the original founding team of United Security Bank in 1987 is not publicly detailed, the company is currently led by an experienced management team, with Dennis R. Woods serving as the President and Chief Executive Officer.

Initial capital/funding

The bank's initial scale was significant for a community institution. By the end of its first full year of operation in 1988, United Security Bank reported approximately $24 million in assets, with deposits totaling $18 million and loans at $15 million.

Given Company's Evolution Milestones

Given Company's Transformative Moments

The company's trajectory has been defined by two major shifts: a structural change to enable growth, and a disciplined focus on credit quality following a challenging period.

The single most transformative decision was the creation of United Security Bancshares in 2001. This move, a common strategy for community banks, transitioned the single bank into a subsidiary of a publicly traded holding company. It allowed for greater capital access and set the stage for expansion beyond its initial footprint. Today, the bank operates 13 branches across several California counties, a direct result of that initial structural decision.

Also, the company's response to the 2009 regulatory agreement fundamentally reshaped its risk appetite and portfolio management. They shifted focus, and it shows in the recent numbers. For instance, in the third quarter of 2025, total loans grew by 3.22% to $958.3 million compared to the end of 2024, indicating sound, managed growth.

• Structural Transformation (2001): Moving to a bank holding company model gave them the framework to grow assets to over $1 billion today.
• Credit Quality Discipline (2009-Present): The push to manage risk has led to a Q3 2025 annualized Return on Average Equity (ROAE) of 11.68%, a sign of efficient capital use.
• Strategic Capital Action (2025): On July 1, 2025, the company recorded a partial redemption of $3.0 million on its junior subordinated debentures (TruPS), which resulted in a gain of $241,000. This is a clear, recent action to optimize the balance sheet.

Here's the quick math on their current scale: Q3 2025 saw total deposits hit $1.08 billion, which is a 1.73% increase from the end of 2024. That's a solid, if unspectacular, growth rate in a tough deposit environment. To be fair, managing interest expense is key, and they decreased it significantly by 18.67% to $3.2 million in Q3 2025 compared to Q3 2024.

If you want a deeper dive into how these historical decisions impact their current financial standing, you should review Breaking Down United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Ownership Structure

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) is a publicly traded bank holding company, and its ownership structure is a fairly typical mix for a regional bank, characterized by a significant stake held by insiders and a strong institutional presence.

This distribution means that while institutional investors like Vanguard Group Inc. and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP hold substantial sway, the executive team and board members-the insiders-retain a large enough collective percentage to influence strategic decisions defintely.

United Security Bancshares' Current Status

United Security Bancshares is a public company traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol UBFO. As of November 21, 2025, the stock was trading at $9.97 per share.

The company operates as the holding company for United Security Bank, a community bank with over $1 billion in assets and 13 full-service branch offices across California's San Joaquin Valley and other key areas.

Its market capitalization (the total value of its outstanding shares) sits at approximately $169.61 million, placing it firmly in the small-cap regional bank category. Small-cap banks like this often see more direct impact from insider and local investor sentiment. If you want to dive deeper into the company's guiding principles, you can check out the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of United Security Bancshares (UBFO).

United Security Bancshares' Ownership Breakdown

The company's ownership profile as of late 2025 shows a balance of power between large institutional funds and the company's own leadership, with the remaining float held by public and retail investors.

Here's the quick math on who controls the shares and, therefore, the votes:

A 21.81% insider ownership stake is substantial. It means the people running the bank have a significant portion of their net worth tied up in its performance, which generally aligns management's interests with those of long-term shareholders.

United Security Bancshares' Leadership

The company is guided by a seasoned management team and a local Board of Directors, many of whom have decades of experience in the regional banking and business environment of the Central Valley.

The leadership structure is anchored by long-serving executives, ensuring continuity, but it also saw a key appointment in 2025 to focus on strategic growth:

• Dennis R. Woods: Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He has been with the bank since its founding and has served as President and CEO since 1993.
• Jay Gill: Appointed Vice Chairman of the Board in April 2025, a move intended to focus on long-term strategy and driving continued organic growth.
• David Kinross: Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
• William Yarbenet: Senior Vice President and Chief Credit Officer, overseeing the bank's lending risk profile.
• Porsche Saunders: Senior Vice President and Chief Lending Officer, responsible for the loan portfolio's growth and management.

The average tenure for the management team is approximately 7.1 years, showing a stable and experienced group steering the company. This stability is critical in community banking where local relationships and consistent credit underwriting are paramount.

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Mission and Values

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) centers its existence beyond profit on a dual mandate: delivering superior value to shareholders while acting as a genuine community bank in California's Central Valley and beyond. This balance of financial rigor and local commitment defines its cultural DNA and long-term strategy.

Given Company's Core Purpose

The core purpose of United Security Bancshares, through its subsidiary United Security Bank, is to be the essential financial partner for its local communities and to consistently drive shareholder returns. This isn't just rhetoric; it's the operational guide that ties loan growth to community support.

Official mission statement

The mission statement is a clear, four-part commitment that ties together the primary stakeholders-investors, customers, employees, and the community-with a foundation of regulatory compliance.

• Protect and Enhance Shareholder Value: This is the primary financial goal, evidenced by the regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.12 per share declared throughout 2025.
• Provide Superior Customer Service: Focus on being a customer-oriented financial institution, offering a wide range of competitively priced commercial banking services.
• Attract and Support High Quality Team Members: Acknowledging that local expertise drives the community banking model.
• Support and Celebrate the Communities We Serve: A commitment to the Central San Joaquin Valley and other operating areas like Santa Clara County.
• Abide by the Highest Standards of Regulatory Safety and Soundness: Maintaining a strong capital base, which is defintely critical in the banking sector.

Vision statement

While a single, formal vision statement is not published, the company's strategic documents outline a clear forward-looking path: to aggressively grow its market presence while enhancing existing services and shareholder value.

• Increase Market Share: The strategy focuses on expanding within existing local communities and entering new markets when opportunities are sound.
• Enhance Financial Services: Continuously improving the product offerings for customers, from commercial real estate loans to wealth management services.
• Generate Shareholder Value: Sustaining strong financial performance; for the third quarter of 2025 alone, the company reported a net income of $4.0 million.

The long-term goal is simple: be the go-to community bank that delivers top-tier financial results. You can see how this strategy plays out in the investor profile: Exploring United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Given Company slogan/tagline

The company often presents itself with a tagline that reinforces its local, customer-focused identity, positioning itself against larger, national banks.

• Your Community Bank of Choice: This phrase encapsulates the value proposition of local decision-making and personalized service.

This local focus is directly tied to their balance sheet; as of Q3 2025, the bank held $1.08 billion in total deposits and $958.3 million in total loans, showing a strong link between local deposits and local lending activity. Here's the quick math: the loan-to-deposit ratio is roughly 88.7%, meaning a significant portion of community deposits is reinvested right back into the local economy.

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) How It Works

United Security Bancshares operates as a holding company for United Security Bank, a state-chartered community bank that generates revenue primarily by funding loans and investment securities with customer deposits. It's a classic community banking model, focusing on the specific financial needs of businesses and individuals across its core California markets in the San Joaquin Valley and surrounding counties.

United Security Bancshares's Product/Service Portfolio

United Security Bancshares's Operational Framework

The operational framework is built on a high-touch, localized community banking model, which is defintely a key differentiator in a market dominated by national institutions. The company's primary subsidiary, United Security Bank, is headquartered in Fresno, California, and operates 13 full-service branch offices across Fresno, Madera, Kern, and Santa Clara counties.

Its core value creation process is straightforward: attract low-cost deposits from the local community and redeploy that capital into higher-yielding loans and investment securities. For the nine months ended September 30, 2025, the company reported a total interest income of $45.913 million. The focus on commercial banking services, particularly CRE lending, drives the majority of its interest income.

• Deposit Gathering: Utilizes a physical branch network and digital tools (like mobile banking) to gather deposits, which reached $1.08 billion in Q3 2025.
• Lending Specialization: Maintains a diverse loan portfolio, but strategically concentrates on commercial real estate, construction, and C&I (Commercial and Industrial) loans, which require deep local market knowledge.
• Risk Management: A conservative approach to credit risk, though the provision for credit losses can fluctuate, like the surge seen in Q1 2025 due to challenges in the medical student loan segment.

United Security Bancshares's Strategic Advantages

United Security Bancshares's success stems from its ability to maintain strong profitability metrics within its defined regional footprint, plus its conservative capital structure. As of the third quarter of 2025, the company's annualized Return on Average Assets (ROAA) stood at 1.29%, an improvement over the previous year. That's a solid number for a regional bank.

The key advantage is its Net Interest Margin (NIM), which measures lending profitability. In Q3 2025, the NIM increased to 4.35%, a strong indicator of efficient asset-liability management, especially in a volatile rate environment. This high NIM means the bank is earning a healthy spread on its loans relative to its cost of funding.

• Local Expertise: Deep relationships and local market knowledge in the San Joaquin Valley and surrounding areas, which is crucial for underwriting commercial real estate loans effectively.
• Loan Portfolio Composition: The heavy weighting toward Commercial Real Estate (CRE) loans provides higher yields than typical residential mortgages, though it requires careful risk management.
• Financial Stability: A strong capital base supports its business model of growth and expansion, and the company has consistently paid a quarterly cash dividend, most recently $0.12 per share declared in September 2025.

If you're looking to dive deeper into the ownership structure behind these financials, you should check out Exploring United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) How It Makes Money

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) primarily makes money through the classic banking model: borrowing funds from depositors at a lower interest rate and lending those funds out at a higher rate. This difference, or spread, is the core of its revenue, known as net interest income. The company supplements this with noninterest income from service charges and fees.

United Security Bancshares' Revenue Breakdown

For the third quarter of 2025, United Security Bancshares generated total operating revenue of approximately $17.2 million, a figure derived from its primary interest income and secondary noninterest income streams. This breakdown clearly shows the company's reliance on traditional lending activities, a common trait among community banks.

Business Economics

The financial engine of United Security Bancshares centers on managing its Net Interest Margin (NIM), which is the profitability measure for lending. The company's strategy is to maintain a high loan-to-deposit ratio and keep its cost of funding low, which is the interest it pays on deposits and borrowings.

• Net Interest Margin (NIM): The NIM stood at a strong 4.35% in the third quarter of 2025, up from 4.20% in the prior year period. This increase shows effective management of the interest rate environment, where asset yields are outpacing funding costs.
• Funding Cost Management: The annualized average cost of deposits decreased to 1.12% in Q3 2025, down from 1.18% in Q3 2024. Lowering this cost directly widens the NIM and boosts profitability.
• Loan Portfolio Concentration: The largest single revenue driver is commercial real estate loans, which comprised 44.56% of the total loan portfolio as of September 30, 2025. This concentration is a key component of their risk-reward profile.
• Niche Lending: A specific focus area is the installment and student loan portfolio, which included $28.8 million in student loans as of Q3 2025, mainly to medical and pharmacy students. This niche provides diversification but has also seen ongoing charge-offs, though the magnitude is decreasing.

The bank's regional focus in California's San Joaquin Valley and surrounding counties allows them to defintely leverage local market knowledge for underwriting, which is a critical pricing advantage over national competitors.

United Security Bancshares' Financial Performance

Analyzing the third quarter of 2025 results gives us a clear picture of the company's health and efficiency. The key metrics show a business that is growing its balance sheet and improving profitability ratios, even with a slight dip in total interest income.

• Net Income: Net income for Q3 2025 was $4.0 million, a 5.07% increase from the $3.8 million reported in Q3 2024. This growth demonstrates strong expense control and NIM expansion.
• Earnings Per Share (EPS): Basic and diluted EPS for the quarter was $0.23.
• Asset and Equity Returns: The annualized Return on Average Assets (ROAA) increased to 1.29%, and the annualized Return on Average Equity (ROAE) rose to 11.68% in Q3 2025. These are solid efficiency numbers for a community bank.
• Balance Sheet Growth: Total loans grew to $958.3 million, an increase of 3.22%, and total deposits reached $1.08 billion, a 1.73% increase, compared to the end of 2024. Loan growth is the lifeblood of a bank.
• Credit Quality: The provision for credit losses decreased significantly to $948,000 in Q3 2025 from $1.6 million in Q3 2024, a positive sign for the loan portfolio's overall health.

Here's the quick math: A 4.35% NIM on nearly a billion dollars in loans is a powerful revenue generator, and the rising ROAE shows they are using shareholder capital efficiently. For a deeper dive into the company's long-term strategy, you should review the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of United Security Bancshares (UBFO).

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) Market Position & Future Outlook

United Security Bancshares (UBFO) maintains a stable, highly localized position within the competitive California regional banking sector, focusing on relationship-driven commercial lending rather than scale. The company's future outlook is tied to its ability to sustain credit quality and capitalize on a net interest margin (NIM) that rose to 4.35% in Q3 2025, a critical measure of profitability for banks.

You should see UBFO as a yield-focused regional player, not a growth stock; its annualized return on average assets (ROAA) was a solid 1.29% for the third quarter of 2025, showing effective use of its asset base.

Competitive Landscape

In the broader California market, UBFO is a small-cap bank, making its competition less about statewide market share and more about local presence against much larger peers. Here is a look at its standing relative to key, similarly-focused regional banks, using their total assets as a proxy for market size in this peer group.

Here's the quick math: UBFO's total assets of $1.21 billion as of June 2025 make it significantly smaller than the nearly $7.5 billion held by Preferred Bank or the approximately $9.9 billion held by TriCo Bancshares, which is a key factor in its niche strategy.

Opportunities & Challenges

As a smaller bank, UBFO has specific opportunities to capture local market share and risks that are amplified by its size. We need to be defintely aware of both sides of this equation.

Industry Position

UBFO is a well-capitalized community bank, not a money-center giant, and its industry standing reflects that focused strategy. Its primary strength is its high profitability metrics relative to its asset size, with an annualized return on average equity (ROAE) of 11.68% in Q3 2025.

• Niche Focus: The bank's operations are hyper-local, primarily serving the Fresno and Central Valley business community, which allows for better credit underwriting through established relationships.
• Valuation Context: With a market capitalization around $175.23 million as of late November 2025, UBFO is valued as a micro-cap regional bank, meaning institutional ownership is lower and the stock can be less liquid.
• Efficiency: The Q3 2025 results show management is managing costs effectively, as a significant 18.67% decrease in interest expense helped net income rise.

To be fair, its small size means it's nimble, but it also lacks the funding diversity of the larger regional banks. If you want to understand the core philosophy driving these decisions, you should review the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of United Security Bancshares (UBFO).

Next step: Portfolio Managers should assess UBFO's loan portfolio concentration against regional economic forecasts for Central California by the end of the quarter.