Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) Short Interest Update

Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 264,500 shares, an increase of 21.5% from the March 31st total of 217,700 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 99,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days. Approximately 0.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Univest Financial

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its position in Univest Financial by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,556,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,426,000 after acquiring an additional 130,584 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted 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 worth $26,390,000 after purchasing an additional 98,009 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its position in Univest Financial by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 439,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,589,000 after buying an additional 19,707 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Univest Financial by 186.3% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 329,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,731,000 after buying an additional 214,572 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Univest Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 303,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,682,000 after buying an additional 2,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.07% of the company’s stock.

Univest Financial Stock Performance

Shares of UVSP opened at $21.23 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.67. The firm has a market cap of $626.92 million, a PE ratio of 8.88 and a beta of 0.89. Univest Financial has a 12-month low of $16.10 and a 12-month high of $22.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $71.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.32 million. Univest Financial had a net margin of 14.98% and a return on equity of 8.42%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Univest Financial will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Univest Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UVSP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Univest Financial from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (up from $22.00) on shares of Univest Financial in a report on Friday.

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.