Quantbot Technologies LP Purchases Shares of 39,875 UGI Corporation $UGI

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies acquired 39,875 shares of UGI Corporation during the second quarter, valued at approximately $1.38 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.34% of UGI’s outstanding stock.
• Analyst sentiment has weakened, with several firms downgrading UGI or cutting price targets. The stock carries an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $42.
• UGI reported quarterly revenue of $1.33 billion and an adjusted loss of $0.20 per share, missing analyst expectations. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, representing a 3.9% annualized yield.

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 39,875 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,377,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UGI. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in UGI by 45.6% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,268 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of UGI in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new stake in shares of UGI in the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in UGI during the second quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Finally, Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in UGI during the second quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Institutional investors own 82.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on UGI shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of UGI from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded UGI from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $40.00 price objective (down from $45.00) on shares of UGI in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on UGI from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered UGI from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.00.

UGI Price Performance

NYSE UGI opened at $38.38 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.10. UGI Corporation has a 52-week low of $31.62 and a 52-week high of $41.34.

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.12). UGI had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Equities research analysts predict that UGI Corporation will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UGI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. UGI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.17%.

Insider Transactions at UGI

In related news, insider Kathleen Shea-Ballay sold 25,360 shares of UGI stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.62, for a total transaction of $852,603.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 25,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $852,603.20. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

About UGI

UGI Corporation NYSE: UGI is a publicly traded energy distribution company headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1882 as the United Gas Improvement Company, UGI has grown into a diversified provider of energy products and services. The company's operations are organized into three primary segments—AmeriGas Propane, UGI Utilities and UGI International—each focused on the delivery of propane, natural gas and related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

AmeriGas Propane, UGI's largest segment, is the leading retail propane distributor in the United States with a network of dealers serving customers in all 50 states.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UGI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.