Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) was upgraded by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $5.60 target price on the oil and gas company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $3.10. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 14.40% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on UGP. Weiss Ratings lowered Ultrapar Participacoes from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered Ultrapar Participacoes from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Ultrapar Participacoes from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.40 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $5.50.

Ultrapar Participacoes Stock Performance

NYSE:UGP opened at $4.90 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $4.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.24, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.85. Ultrapar Participacoes has a 1-year low of $2.70 and a 1-year high of $5.42.

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.01). Ultrapar Participacoes had a return on equity of 14.11% and a net margin of 1.72%.The business had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.64 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Ultrapar Participacoes will post 0.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ultrapar Participacoes

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Ultrapar Participacoes during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 3.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultrapar Participacoes Company Profile

Ultrapar Participações SA is a Brazilian diversified holding company operating in the downstream energy and chemical sectors. Its Ipiranga unit runs one of Brazil’s largest networks of fuel stations, supplying gasoline, ethanol, diesel and convenience-store products to retail and wholesale customers. Through Ultragaz, the company is a leading distributor of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), offering cylinder and bulk gas solutions for residential, commercial and industrial use across urban and rural regions.

In the specialty chemicals arena, Ultrapar controls Oxiteno, which produces surfactants and specialty chemical formulations for industries such as personal care, oil and gas, agrochemicals and coatings.