Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $38.86 and last traded at $38.8450, with a volume of 20712 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average is $35.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $87.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.85 million. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 10.19%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is an increase from Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Natalye Paquin sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.80, for a total transaction of $491,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,004 shares in the company, valued at $642,751.20. The trade was a 43.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael S. Keim sold 7,245 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief operating officer owned 66,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,592,757.09. This trade represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 3rd quarter worth $1,004,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 3rd quarter worth $675,000. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 4th quarter worth $688,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 4th quarter worth $631,000. Finally, Abacus Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 4th quarter worth $377,000. 75.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.