UGI (NYSE:UGI) Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of UGI (NYSE:UGI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

UGI has been the subject of several other research reports. TheStreet raised shares of UGI from a d+ rating to a c- rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of UGI from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and raised their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $28.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th.

UGI Stock Performance

NYSE UGI opened at $23.79 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $24.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.18. UGI has a 52 week low of $20.19 and a 52 week high of $35.18.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.08. UGI had a negative net margin of 5.48% and a positive return on equity of 14.09%. The business had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.98 billion. Equities research analysts predict that UGI will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UGI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.31%. UGI’s dividend payout ratio is presently -68.18%.

Institutional Trading of UGI

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in UGI by 165.4% during the fourth quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 690 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the period. American National Bank acquired a new stake in UGI during the first quarter valued at $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in UGI during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of UGI by 66.8% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UGI in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

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.