Pier Capital LLC Has $14.57 Million Position in Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI)

Pier Capital LLC grew its holdings in Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 566,663 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,281 shares during the period. Universal Technical Institute comprises approximately 2.1% of Pier Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Pier Capital LLC’s holdings in Universal Technical Institute were worth $14,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UTI. State Street Corp grew its position in Universal Technical Institute by 3.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 856,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,920,000 after acquiring an additional 29,461 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Universal Technical Institute by 9.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 952,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,496,000 after purchasing an additional 85,417 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 362.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 376,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,691,000 after purchasing an additional 295,408 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 37.4% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 71,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,836,000 after purchasing an additional 19,453 shares during the period. Finally, Guardian Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 5,347.0% in the 3rd quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86,553 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,407,000 after purchasing an additional 84,964 shares during the period. 75.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Universal Technical Institute Stock Up 3.4 %

NYSE:UTI opened at $27.38 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.49. Universal Technical Institute, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.66 and a twelve month high of $30.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.93.

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.22. Universal Technical Institute had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 21.25%. Analysts anticipate that Universal Technical Institute, Inc. will post 1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Universal Technical Institute news, EVP Sherrell Smith sold 36,773 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.68, for a total transaction of $981,103.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 227,358 shares in the company, valued at $6,065,911.44. This trade represents a 13.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director George W. Brochick sold 8,000 shares of Universal Technical Institute stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $220,720.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 34,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $963,360.03. This trade represents a 18.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 84,219 shares of company stock valued at $2,300,395. Corporate insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on UTI. Barrington Research increased their price target on Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Northland Securities increased their target price on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Lake Street Capital upped their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $22.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Technical Institute currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $31.17.

Universal Technical Institute Company Profile

Universal Technical Institute, Inc provides transportation, skilled trades, and healthcare education programs in the United States. The company operates in two segments, UTI and Concorde. It offers certificate, diploma, or degree programs under various brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute, and MIAT College of Technology.