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

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

Insider Transactions at Univest Financial

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 value of $104,485.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 55,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,601,328.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Michael S. Keim sold 3,633 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.76, for a total value of $104,485.08. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 55,679 shares in the company, valued at $1,601,328.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.50, for a total transaction of $34,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,570,329.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,389 shares of company stock valued at $412,352 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Univest Financial by 1.1% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 47,766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Univest Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Univest Financial by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 19,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,909 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 2,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Univest Financial by 66.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,000 after buying an additional 2,465 shares in the last quarter. 75.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Univest Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UVSP traded up $0.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $27.91. 71,394 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 102,453. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $814.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Univest Financial has a 12 month low of $16.10 and a 12 month high of $29.49.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 EPS 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 analysts’ expectations of $72.50 million. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 14.91%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. On average, equities 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Univest Financial’s payout ratio is presently 34.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.