Northern Trust Corp Purchases 9,184 Shares of Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP)

Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Univest Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UVSP - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 339,290 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,184 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.17% of Univest Financial worth $10,012,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Univest Financial by 161.2% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 619 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Univest Financial by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,796 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury purchased a new stake in shares of Univest Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $244,000. Zacks Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of Univest Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $289,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Univest Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $290,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Univest Financial news, Director Anne Vazquez acquired 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.63 per share, with a total value of $35,787.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,250 shares in the company, valued at $178,937.50. This represents a 25.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Univest Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Univest Financial Trading Down 2.0%

NASDAQ:UVSP traded down $0.61 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $29.99. The stock had a trading volume of 119,895 shares, compared to its average volume of 107,281. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.64 and a 200 day moving average of $29.72. The company has a market capitalization of $866.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.73. Univest Financial Co. has a one year low of $20.37 and a one year high of $32.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Univest Financial (NASDAQ:UVSP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $79.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $77.65 million. Univest Financial had a return on equity of 8.51% and a net margin of 15.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Univest Financial Co. will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Univest Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is an increase from Univest Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. Univest Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.96%.

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.