Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $43.65, as the shares continued to climb above recent moving averages.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.96 EPS versus estimates of $0.84, while revenue also topped forecasts at $87.45 million.
• Univest recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.23 per share from $0.22, and insiders have been selling shares even as institutional investors continue to hold the majority of the stock.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $43.65 and last traded at $43.2590, with a volume of 12480 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.89.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UVSP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $37.00.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Trading Up 0.9%

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.06 and a beta of 0.67.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.12. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania had a return on equity of 10.19% and a net margin of 18.25%.The business had revenue of $87.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.85 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania will post 3.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were given a $0.23 dividend. This is an increase from Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania's payout ratio is currently 27.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania

In other Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania news, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 13,933 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.91, for a total transaction of $569,999.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,521,086.83. This trade represents a 11.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael S. Keim sold 7,245 shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.71, for a total transaction of $280,453.95. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 66,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,592,757.09. The trade was a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 36,268 shares of company stock worth $1,427,334 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.83% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 0.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,886,235 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $64,622,000 after purchasing an additional 6,965 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,741,938 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $52,293,000 after buying an additional 16,682 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 15.1% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,475,872 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,335,000 after buying an additional 193,561 shares during the period. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 617,526 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $20,218,000 after buying an additional 112,203 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 38.0% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 379,679 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,431,000 after buying an additional 104,516 shares during the last quarter. 75.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Company Profile

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania is a financial holding company headquartered in Souderton, Pennsylvania, operating through its primary subsidiary, Univest Bank and Trust Co The company offers a comprehensive range of banking services, including commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, mortgage banking, treasury and payment solutions, and wealth management services. Through its community banking model, Univest serves individuals, small to middle-market businesses, and nonprofit and public institutions.

Founded in 1893 as Souderton Industrial Savings Association, Univest has grown through a combination of organic expansion and targeted acquisitions.

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