Evaluate Research analyst Sandy Mehta initiated coverage on United Bancorp Inc., noting that the "undiscovered and undervalued" company has exceptionally strong EPS and dividend growth.

Mehta wrote that the Martins Ferry, Ohio-based company is in a sweet spot in its life cycle in terms of strong organic and acquisition related growth.

The analyst said EPS growth is driven by a 29% year-over-year increase in higher-yielding earning assets, which has resulted in a 30% increase in year-to-date interest income. She also noted that the company remains well-capitalized with 16.1% total capital to risk-weighted assets, in addition to having excess liquidity and being underleveraged.

Mehta assigned United Bancorp a "buy" rating and a price target of $17.