Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) Downgraded to "Hold" Rating by Zacks Research

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Monday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Suburban Propane Partners from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered Suburban Propane Partners from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Suburban Propane Partners has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Suburban Propane Partners Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:SPH opened at $17.40 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.94. Suburban Propane Partners has a 12 month low of $16.53 and a 12 month high of $20.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. The stock has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.41.

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by ($0.11). Suburban Propane Partners had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 18.57%. The company had revenue of $261.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $255.00 million. Equities analysts predict that Suburban Propane Partners will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Suburban Propane Partners news, VP Bryon L. Koepke sold 2,848 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total value of $50,267.20. Following the sale, the vice president owned 100,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,777,602.10. This represents a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Suburban Propane Partners

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 15,051,196 shares of the energy company's stock worth $279,049,000 after purchasing an additional 724,170 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Suburban Propane Partners by 4.8% during the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 4,177,601 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $77,912,000 after buying an additional 192,154 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Suburban Propane Partners by 11.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,370,534 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $28,795,000 after buying an additional 142,547 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in Suburban Propane Partners in the second quarter worth $2,278,000. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 32.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 466,798 shares of the energy company's stock worth $8,654,000 after acquiring an additional 113,396 shares during the last quarter. 30.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Suburban Propane Partners Company Profile

Suburban Propane Partners L.P. NYSE: SPH is a publicly traded master limited partnership headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey, that provides propane and related energy services to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers. As one of the largest propane retailers in the United States, the company delivers propane gas, heating oil, diesel fuel and natural gas throughout its service territories. In addition to fuel distribution, Suburban Propane offers HVAC installation, maintenance and repair services, as well as safety inspections and equipment leasing to support customers' energy needs.

The company's core business centers on the delivery of propane for space and water heating, cooking and agricultural applications.

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