Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) Shares Gap Up to $25.67

Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP – Get Rating) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $25.67, but opened at $26.39. Univest Financial shares last traded at $25.92, with a volume of 110 shares traded.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Univest Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 1st. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Univest Financial in a research note on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

The stock has a market capitalization of $759.95 million, a PE ratio of 9.54 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company’s 50-day moving average is $26.02 and its 200 day moving average is $28.34.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $67.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.57 million. Univest Financial had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 10.45%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 11th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 10th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. This is a boost from Univest Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.23%.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. River Oaks Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Univest Financial during the 4th quarter worth $1,635,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Univest Financial by 65.6% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,284,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,171,000 after buying an additional 508,810 shares in the last quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA acquired a new position in Univest Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $13,200,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Univest Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,772,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in Univest Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,857,000. 72.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP)

Univest Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Univest Bank and Trust Co that provides banking products and services primarily in Pennsylvania. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance. The Banking segment provides 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.

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