UGI Corporation $UGI Stake Raised by CWA Asset Management Group LLC

Key Points

• CWA Asset Management Group increased its UGI stake by 153.5% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 95,069 shares valued at approximately $3.39 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.34% of UGI’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with UGI carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $45.80, above its reported trading price of $38.56.
• UGI pays a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, or $1.50 annually, representing a 3.9% yield; however, its latest quarterly results missed analyst expectations for both earnings and revenue.

CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI - Free Report) by 153.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,069 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 57,570 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC's holdings in UGI were worth $3,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UGI. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in UGI by 4.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,733 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 303 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in UGI by 80.1% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 724 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC boosted its stake in UGI by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 7,033 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew 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 buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in UGI by 36.3% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,521 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.34% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on UGI shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of UGI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of UGI in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $46.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of UGI from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Huntington started coverage on shares of UGI in a report on Monday, September 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of UGI from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $40.00 to $43.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.80.

UGI Trading Up 1.3%

UGI stock opened at $38.56 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The company has a market cap of $8.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.04 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.20. UGI Corporation has a 52 week low of $31.65 and a 52 week high of $41.34.

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.12). UGI had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that UGI Corporation will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

UGI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $0.3750 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. UGI's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.17%.

About UGI

UGI Corporation is a diversified energy company headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1882 as the United Gas Improvement Company, it has developed into an operator and distributor of energy businesses serving residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers.

Through UGI Utilities, the company distributes natural gas and provides electric utility service in parts of Pennsylvania. Its other operations include natural gas marketing, midstream services and energy-related activities in the United States, along with propane distribution through AmeriGas and liquefied petroleum gas distribution in Europe through UGI International.

UGI's businesses serve customers across the United States and selected European markets.

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