StockNews.com Downgrades UGI (NYSE:UGI) to Hold

UGI (NYSE:UGI) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on UGI. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of UGI from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 3rd.

UGI Price Performance

UGI stock opened at $22.56 on Tuesday. UGI has a twelve month low of $20.19 and a twelve month high of $27.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $23.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.08. The company has a market capitalization of $4.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -55.01 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.32. UGI had a negative net margin of 0.89% and a positive return on equity of 15.78%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that UGI will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of UGI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UGI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in UGI by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 139,948 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,219,000 after purchasing an additional 47,824 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of UGI by 71.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 610,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,046,000 after buying an additional 255,507 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its holdings in shares of UGI by 139.0% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 41,694 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $959,000 after buying an additional 24,250 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in shares of UGI by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 91,762 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,111,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of UGI by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 138,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,183,000 after buying an additional 13,890 shares during the last quarter. 82.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UGI Company Profile

UGI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, distributes, stores, transports, and markets energy products and related services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: AmeriGas Propane, UGI International, Midstream & Marketing, and UGI Utilities. It distributes propane to approximately 1.3 million residential, commercial/industrial, motor fuel, agricultural, and wholesale customers through 1,400 propane distribution locations.