Short Interest in Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) Increases By 47.6%

Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 365,100 shares, a growth of 47.6% from the September 15th total of 247,300 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 107,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Univest Financial Stock Up 3.4 %

UVSP stock traded up $0.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $27.91. 71,394 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 102,453. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market capitalization of $814.13 million, a PE ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 0.85. Univest Financial has a twelve month low of $16.10 and a twelve month high of $29.49. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.05.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $120.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.50 million. Univest Financial had a net margin of 14.91% and a return on equity of 8.23%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Univest Financial will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Univest Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 7th were given 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 yield of 3.01%. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Univest Financial news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 4,541 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.75, for a total transaction of $130,553.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,592,876.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, 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 value of $34,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,570,329.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 4,541 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.75, for a total transaction of $130,553.75. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,592,876.25. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Univest Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UVSP. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Univest Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Univest Financial by 212.7% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,538 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Univest Financial by 95.7% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 2,094 shares during the period. Comerica Bank raised its position in shares of Univest Financial by 11,533.8% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 8,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $179,000 after buying an additional 8,535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ariadne Wealth Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Univest Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $231,000. 75.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.