UL Solutions Inc. $ULS Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Key Points

• Clearbridge Investments reduced its stake in UL Solutions by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 20,718 shares and leaving it with 222,573 shares valued at about $17.6 million.
• UL Solutions reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $0.50 per share versus the $0.42 estimate and revenue of $758 million, up 7.5% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $101.54, while insiders have also been selling shares recently.

Clearbridge Investments LLC trimmed its position in UL Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ULS - Free Report) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 222,573 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,718 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.11% of UL Solutions worth $17,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ULS. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in UL Solutions by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,740,636 shares of the company's stock worth $531,567,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213,188 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $72,719,000. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of UL Solutions by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,548,311 shares of the company's stock valued at $534,738,000 after acquiring an additional 738,720 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of UL Solutions by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,942,905 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,394,000 after acquiring an additional 674,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of UL Solutions by 405.7% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 593,484 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,054,000 after acquiring an additional 476,121 shares during the last quarter.

UL Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of ULS stock opened at $98.67 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. UL Solutions Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $61.64 and a fifty-two week high of $107.54. The stock's 50-day moving average is $93.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.53. The firm has a market cap of $19.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.70, a PEG ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.63.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.08. UL Solutions had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 11.24%.The company had revenue of $758.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $748.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The business's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that UL Solutions Inc. will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UL Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.145 per share. This represents a $0.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. UL Solutions's dividend payout ratio is 33.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded UL Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on UL Solutions from $102.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on UL Solutions from $88.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on UL Solutions from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on UL Solutions from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UL Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $101.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Gitte Schjotz sold 9,865 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.98, for a total transaction of $956,707.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 59,341 shares in the company, valued at $5,754,890.18. This represents a 14.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Alberto Uggetti sold 6,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $610,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,307 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,030,700. This trade represents a 37.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 64,980 shares of company stock worth $6,217,938 in the last 90 days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About UL Solutions

UL Solutions NYSE: ULS is a global safety science company that provides testing, inspection, certification, advisory and digital solutions designed to help organizations manage risk, ensure regulatory compliance and drive innovation. With roots dating back to 1894 when it was founded as Underwriters' Electrical Bureau, the company rebranded as UL Solutions following its initial public offering in 2022. Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, UL Solutions operates independently to serve a broad range of industries with an emphasis on product safety, performance and sustainability.

The company's core services include standards development, product testing and certification for sectors such as building products, consumer electronics, automotive, life sciences, energy and industrial equipment.

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