Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on UGP. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ultrapar Participacoes currently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and an average price target of $4.50.

Ultrapar Participacoes Price Performance

Ultrapar Participacoes stock opened at $3.96 on Monday. Ultrapar Participacoes has a 1 year low of $2.53 and a 1 year high of $4.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.21. The company has a market cap of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.79, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.82.

Ultrapar Participacoes Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.0555 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 360.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. Ultrapar Participacoes’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UGP. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes by 162.2% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 599,642 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 370,960 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Ultrapar Participacoes by 494.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 53,632 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $165,000 after acquiring an additional 44,607 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ultrapar Participacoes by 130.9% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 21,491 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 12,185 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ultrapar Participacoes in the first quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ultrapar Participacoes in the first quarter valued at $69,000. 3.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultrapar Participacoes Company Profile

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.