Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the five research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $4.37.

A number of analysts have commented on UGP shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Ultrapar Participações from $5.30 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com raised Ultrapar Participações from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 24th. Finally, Itau BBA Securities cut Ultrapar Participações from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ultrapar Participações

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,382,989 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,076,000 after purchasing an additional 104,754 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Ultrapar Participações by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 498,079 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,828,000 after buying an additional 57,915 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. purchased a new stake in Ultrapar Participações during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,169,000. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Ultrapar Participações by 1,497.3% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 153,473 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 143,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its stake in Ultrapar Participações by 453.0% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 108,623 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $589,000 after buying an additional 88,980 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.58% of the company’s stock.

Ultrapar Participações Stock Performance

Shares of UGP opened at $5.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $5.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.27. Ultrapar Participações has a one year low of $2.74 and a one year high of $6.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.59.

Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The oil and gas company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter. Ultrapar Participações had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 1.95%. The company had revenue of $6.75 billion during the quarter. As a group, research analysts predict that Ultrapar Participações will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Ultrapar Participações Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $0.0723 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This is a positive change from Ultrapar Participações’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. Ultrapar Participações’s payout ratio is currently 31.11%.

About Ultrapar Participações

Ultrapar Participações SA, through its subsidiaries, operates in the energy and infrastructure business in Brazil. The company distributes liquefied petroleum gas to residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, in addition to renewable electricity and compressed natural gas. It also operates in the distribution and marketing of gasoline, ethanol, diesel, fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas for vehicles, and lubricants; and holds AmPm convenience stores and provides JetOil lubricant services.