Empowered Funds LLC Buys 4,739 Shares of Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP)

Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 98,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,739 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Univest Financial were worth $2,905,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UVSP. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Univest Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $289,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Univest Financial by 66.1% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 2,465 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Univest Financial by 34.6% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 54,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,523,000 after purchasing an additional 13,912 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Univest Financial by 2,713.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Univest Financial by 57.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 228,321 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,425,000 after purchasing an additional 83,312 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UVSP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Univest Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Univest Financial from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th.

Univest Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ UVSP opened at $31.23 on Friday. Univest Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $18.41 and a 52-week high of $32.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $30.17 and a 200-day moving average of $28.99. The company has a market capitalization of $906.92 million, a P/E ratio of 12.06 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 8.51% and a net margin of 15.17%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Univest Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. Univest Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.43%.

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.