Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) saw strong trading volume on Friday . 63,011 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the previous session’s volume of 103,151 shares.The stock last traded at $28.95 and had previously closed at $29.19.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $29.00 price objective (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Univest Financial in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Univest Financial from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

Univest Financial Stock Down 1.0 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $27.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $843.30 million, a P/E ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.10. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 14.91%. The firm had revenue of $120.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.50 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Univest Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.50, for a total transaction of $34,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,187 shares in the company, valued at $2,570,329.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, COO Michael S. Keim sold 3,633 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.76, for a total transaction of $104,485.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 55,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,601,328.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.50, for a total transaction of $34,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,570,329.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,389 shares of company stock valued at $412,352. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Univest Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UVSP. Ariadne Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Univest Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $231,000. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 21.9% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 40,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $918,000 after buying an additional 7,232 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,210,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,632,000 after buying an additional 12,401 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 141,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,233,000 after buying an additional 22,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Univest Financial by 21.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 482,089 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,006,000 after purchasing an additional 83,599 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.07% of the company’s stock.

Univest Financial Company Profile

Univest Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Univest Bank and Trust Co that provides banking products and services primarily in the United States. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance. The Banking segment offers a range of banking services, such as deposit taking, loan origination and servicing, mortgage banking, other general banking, and equipment lease financing services for individuals, businesses, municipalities, and nonprofit organizations.