Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Stock Position in Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP - Free Report) by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 228,321 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 83,312 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.78% of Univest Financial worth $6,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Leeward Investments LLC MA boosted its holdings in Univest Financial by 5.6% in the second quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 404,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,245,000 after acquiring an additional 21,550 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Univest Financial by 28.3% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 118,994 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,478,000 after buying an additional 26,234 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System acquired a new position in Univest Financial in the first quarter valued at $465,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Univest Financial by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 82,701 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,722,000 after acquiring an additional 6,125 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Univest Financial by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 40,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $918,000 after purchasing an additional 7,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UVSP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective (up previously from $23.00) on shares of Univest Financial in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Univest Financial from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday.

Univest Financial Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of UVSP traded down $0.19 on Tuesday, reaching $28.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 96,908 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,424. The stock has a market capitalization of $832.79 million, a PE ratio of 11.89 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $16.26 and a twelve month high of $29.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $27.72 and a 200-day moving average of $24.70.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.07. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.32% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company had revenue of $126.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Univest Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Univest Financial's payout ratio is 35.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 2,773 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.56, for a total value of $79,196.88. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,187 shares in the company, valued at $2,575,740.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 2,773 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.56, for a total value of $79,196.88. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,575,740.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.50, for a total transaction of $34,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,570,329.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,389 shares of company stock worth $412,352 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.