PARKERSBURG, WV-- United Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: UBSI), announced that at the May 17, 2004 board meeting, the Board of Directors declared a second quarter dividend of 25¢ per share for shareholders of record as of June 11, 2004.

The dividend payout of approximately $10.9 million on 43.5 million shares is payable July 1, 2004. The year 2004 is expected to be the 31st consecutive year of dividend increases to United shareholders. The annualized 2004 dividend of $1.00 equates to a yield of approximately 3.4% based on recent UBSI market prices.

United recently announced record earnings of $23.5 million for the first quarter of 2004. These results, the largest amount of quarterly earnings in United's history, represented a 4% increase over earnings of $22.5 million for the first quarter of 2003. Diluted earnings per share were 53¢ for the first quarter of 2004 and 2003.

United Bankshares, with $6.4 billion in assets, has 91 full-service offices in West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, and Washington, D.C. United Bankshares stock is traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market System under the quotation symbol "UBSI".