Pzena Investment Management LLC Reduces Position in Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP)

Pzena Investment Management LLC cut its position in Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,149,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 40,631 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned 3.96% of Univest Financial worth $33,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of Univest Financial by 93.1% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 14,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $430,000 after purchasing an additional 7,024 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Univest Financial by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Univest Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $2,299,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Univest Financial by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 28,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bailard Inc. grew its position in shares of Univest Financial by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 21,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $624,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. 75.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Univest Financial Trading Down 3.8 %

NASDAQ UVSP opened at $27.74 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $29.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.46. The company has a market capitalization of $804.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 0.89. Univest Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $18.41 and a 12 month high of $32.75.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.08. Univest Financial had a net margin of 15.17% and a return on equity of 8.51%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Univest Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. Univest Financial’s payout ratio is currently 32.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Univest Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd.

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.