36,361 Shares in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania $UVSP Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 36,361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,246,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,171 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 102,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,907,000 after acquiring an additional 4,087 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,467,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 545.3% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 2,252 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania by 8.1% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 30,612 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,291 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael S. Keim sold 7,245 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.71, for a total transaction of $280,453.95. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey M. Schweitzer sold 13,933 shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.91, for a total value of $569,999.03. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,513 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,521,086.83. The trade was a 11.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 23,268 shares of company stock valued at $935,934 over the last ninety days. 1.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UVSP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UVSP opened at $44.40 on Friday. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania has a twelve month low of $27.91 and a twelve month high of $45.46. The firm has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.57 and a 200 day moving average of $37.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (NASDAQ:UVSP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.05). Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania had a net margin of 18.86% and a return on equity of 10.41%. The business had revenue of $89.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.66 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 5th. Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.59%.

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.