Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) Shares Sold by Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC

Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) by 20.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 37,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,692 shares during the period. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Univest Financial were worth $778,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 439,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,589,000 after purchasing an additional 19,707 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 212.8% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,941 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,197,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,390,000 after purchasing an additional 98,009 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 1,787.7% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,162 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 8.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 82,701 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,722,000 after purchasing an additional 6,125 shares during the period. 75.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $23.00 target price (up from $22.00) on shares of Univest Financial in a report on Friday, April 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 9,000 shares of Univest Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.55, for a total value of $202,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,033,716.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Univest Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:UVSP traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $26.82. 78,528 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 107,635. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $22.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $785.02 million, a PE ratio of 11.22 and a beta of 0.86. Univest Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $16.10 and a 1-year high of $27.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $77.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $71.40 million. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.35% and a net margin of 14.98%. Research analysts expect that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Univest Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 7th. Univest Financial’s payout ratio is currently 35.15%.

About Univest Financial

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.