Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 221,900 shares, an increase of 43.5% from the October 31st total of 154,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 102,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 0.8% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Univest Financial from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th.

Univest Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ UVSP traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $31.76. 102,626 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 104,099. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Univest Financial has a 52 week low of $18.41 and a 52 week high of $32.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $922.31 million, a P/E ratio of 12.84 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $28.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.21.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $126.59 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.11 million. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.24% and a net margin of 14.90%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.58 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Univest Financial will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

Univest Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Univest Financial news, COO Michael S. Keim sold 3,633 shares of Univest Financial 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 55,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,601,328.04. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 4,541 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 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 4.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,374 shares of company stock valued at $297,699. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Univest Financial by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 48,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,348,000 after acquiring an additional 12,771 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Univest Financial in the third quarter worth $79,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Univest Financial by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,826,000 after purchasing an additional 23,770 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 91.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 31,783 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in Univest Financial by 75.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 48,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,373,000 after buying an additional 21,030 shares during the period. 75.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.