The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 21,061 Shares of UGI Corporation $UGI

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has reduced its stake in UGI Corporation by 3.8%, now holding approximately 531,445 shares valued at about $17.57 million.
• UGI reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.01), exceeding the expected EPS of ($0.12), and recorded revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter.
• UGI has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.375, representing an annualized dividend of $1.50, yielding 4.4% with a payout ratio of 78.95%.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its holdings in UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI - Free Report) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 531,445 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 21,061 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.25% of UGI worth $17,575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UGI. Corvex Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of UGI in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,354,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its position in shares of UGI by 91.5% in the first quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 2,987,818 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $98,807,000 after buying an additional 1,427,553 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in UGI by 50.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,366,100 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $66,806,000 after acquiring an additional 795,093 shares during the period. Sourcerock Group LLC raised its holdings in UGI by 236.8% in the 4th quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 1,025,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $28,936,000 after acquiring an additional 720,700 shares during the period. Finally, SIR Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in UGI by 1,279.5% in the 4th quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. now owns 729,800 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $20,602,000 after acquiring an additional 676,898 shares during the period. 82.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UGI Price Performance

UGI stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $34.43. 211,685 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,924,161. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.47. UGI Corporation has a 12 month low of $23.14 and a 12 month high of $37.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a PE ratio of 18.13, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.07.

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.11. UGI had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 15.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.06 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that UGI Corporation will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UGI Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. UGI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 78.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on UGI. Zacks Research raised shares of UGI to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of UGI from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of UGI from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $31.33.

About UGI

UGI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, distributes, stores, transports, and markets energy products and related services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: AmeriGas Propane, UGI International, Midstream & Marketing, and UGI Utilities. It distributes propane to approximately 1.3 million residential, commercial/industrial, motor fuel, agricultural, and wholesale customers through 1,400 propane distribution locations.