VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Acquires Shares of 122,200 UGI Corporation $UGI

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems acquired 122,200 UGI shares worth approximately $4.2 million, while institutional investors collectively own 82.34% of the company.
• UGI’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, with an adjusted loss of $0.20 per share versus the $0.08 loss analysts anticipated and revenue of $1.33 billion against a $1.50 billion estimate.
• UGI declared a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, representing a 3.9% annualized yield, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $43 price target.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 122,200 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,221,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned 0.06% of UGI at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MSH Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UGI during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,961,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in UGI in the second quarter worth $1,949,000. Private Management Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of UGI by 10.8% in the second quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 1,057,888 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,539,000 after acquiring an additional 103,470 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in shares of UGI during the second quarter valued at $73,069,000. Finally, PEAK6 LLC purchased a new position in shares of UGI in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,548,000. 82.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UGI news, insider Kathleen Shea-Ballay sold 25,360 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.62, for a total value of $852,603.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

UGI Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of UGI stock opened at $38.59 on Thursday. UGI Corporation has a 12-month low of $31.62 and a 12-month high of $41.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm's 50 day moving average is $36.67 and its 200 day moving average is $36.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.91 and a beta of 0.94.

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. UGI had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 12.80%. Research analysts expect that UGI Corporation will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. UGI's dividend payout ratio is 50.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of UGI from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $43.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of UGI from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of UGI from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of UGI from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of UGI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.00.

UGI Profile

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.

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