American Century Companies Inc. Grows Position in Universal Technical Institute Inc $UTI

American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Universal Technical Institute Inc (NYSE:UTI) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,580,224 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,025 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 2.90% of Universal Technical Institute worth $51,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in Universal Technical Institute in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in Universal Technical Institute during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in Universal Technical Institute by 17,142.9% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Universal Technical Institute in the first quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 75.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Technical Institute Stock Performance

Universal Technical Institute stock opened at $35.13 on Friday. Universal Technical Institute Inc has a 52 week low of $21.29 and a 52 week high of $38.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.20 and a 200-day moving average of $28.55.

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.08. Universal Technical Institute had a net margin of 6.28% and a return on equity of 16.98%. The firm had revenue of $220.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.65 million. On average, analysts expect that Universal Technical Institute Inc will post 1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UTI has been the subject of several research reports. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Universal Technical Institute from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Universal Technical Institute from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Universal Technical Institute from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Technical Institute has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.20.

Insider Activity

In other Universal Technical Institute news, CEO Jerome Alan Grant sold 60,040 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total transaction of $2,098,398.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 430,215 shares in the company, valued at $15,036,014.25. This represents a 12.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Carolyn Ann Frank sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.08, for a total value of $52,640.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 30,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $910,581.76. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 114,461 shares of company stock worth $4,101,832. 9.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Universal Technical Institute Company Profile

Universal Technical Institute, Inc (NYSE: UTI) is a leading provider of post-secondary education for students pursuing careers as professional automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine technicians, as well as in welding and CNC machining. The company designs and delivers hands-on training through a blend of classroom instruction and experiential lab work, preparing graduates for entry-level positions in the transportation, manufacturing and energy sectors. UTI’s curriculum emphasizes industry-recognized credentials and proprietary coursework developed in collaboration with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to ensure alignment with evolving employer needs.

Through a network of campus locations across the United States and select centers in Canada, Universal Technical Institute offers diploma and certificate programs ranging from 36 to 74 weeks in length.