UGI (NYSE:UGI) Downgraded to "Hold" at StockNews.com

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on UGI. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of UGI from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. TheStreet upgraded shares of UGI from a "d+" rating to a "c-" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday.

UGI Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of UGI stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $23.79. 2,023,645 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,961,991. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $24.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.18. The stock has a market cap of $4.99 billion, a PE ratio of -10.81 and a beta of 1.16. UGI has a 12 month low of $20.19 and a 12 month high of $35.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59.

UGI (NYSE:UGI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.08. UGI had a negative net margin of 5.48% and a positive return on equity of 14.09%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.98 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that UGI will post 2.9 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UGI

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in UGI by 3.4% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 35,154,665 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,221,976,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150,654 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UGI by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,897,100 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $661,669,000 after buying an additional 625,128 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of UGI by 5.5% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,567,208 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $507,628,000 after buying an additional 974,540 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of UGI in the fourth quarter valued at $203,745,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of UGI by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,969,786 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $73,057,000 after buying an additional 618,321 shares in the last quarter. 82.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UGI Company Profile

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.

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