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

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

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. TheStreet raised shares of UGI from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of UGI from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $27.00 to $28.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th.

UGI Trading Up 8.2 %

Shares of UGI stock opened at $25.74 on Thursday. UGI has a 52-week low of $20.19 and a 52-week high of $35.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a PE ratio of -11.70 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.20.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.98 billion. On average, analysts predict that UGI will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of UGI

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UGI. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UGI during the fourth quarter worth approximately $203,745,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its position in shares of UGI by 503.8% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,904,763 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $66,810,000 after acquiring an additional 2,423,713 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of UGI during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,034,000. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in UGI by 3.4% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 35,154,665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,221,976,000 after buying an additional 1,150,654 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in UGI by 5.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,130,520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $780,140,000 after buying an additional 1,141,345 shares during the period. 82.34% of the stock is 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.