** Raymond James downgrades shares of U.S. regional lender Atlantic Union Bank AUB.N to "market perform" from "strong buy"
** Brokerage cuts EPS estimates to reflect lower yields on new loan originations and slower-than-expected accretion from acquisition of Sandy Spring Bancorp and American National Bank
** AUB bought American National in 2024 and Sandy Spring in 2025
** Sandy Spring loan accretion ~25% below projections since acquisition in April; American National accretion likely to be exhausted by early 2027, brokerage says
** AUB's below-peer cash profitability limits ability to widen premium valuation - brokerage
** 6 of 9 analysts rate the stock "buy" or "strong buy", 3 "hold"; median PT at $41 - data compiled by LSEG
** As of Thursday close, AUB down 7.7% YTD
(Reporting by Pragyan Kalita in Bengaluru)
((Pragyan.Kalita@thomsonreuters.com))