Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,060,000 shares, a drop of 36.6% from the March 15th total of 4,830,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,500,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ultrapar Participações

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UGP. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Ultrapar Participações by 194.0% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,266,762 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $5,486,000 after buying an additional 1,495,832 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 12,392.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,314,326 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,588,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303,805 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 85.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,199,348 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,817,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012,518 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 264.1% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,307,919 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,864,000 after purchasing an additional 948,695 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 771.0% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 819,019 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,006,000 after purchasing an additional 724,989 shares during the period. 3.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ultrapar Participações Stock Performance

UGP traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $5.26. 1,631,681 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,497,514. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.18. Ultrapar Participações has a 12 month low of $2.74 and a 12 month high of $6.34. The stock has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.28.

Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The oil and gas company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ultrapar Participações had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 1.95%. The firm had revenue of $6.75 billion for the quarter. Analysts anticipate that Ultrapar Participações will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Ultrapar Participações Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $0.0723 dividend. This represents a yield of 2%. This is a boost from Ultrapar Participações's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. Ultrapar Participações's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UGP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Ultrapar Participações from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 24th. Itau BBA Securities downgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Ultrapar Participações from $5.30 to $6.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.37.

Ultrapar Participações Company Profile

Ultrapar Participações SA, through its subsidiaries, operates in the energy and infrastructure business in Brazil. The company distributes liquefied petroleum gas to residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, in addition to renewable electricity and compressed natural gas. It also operates in the distribution and marketing of gasoline, ethanol, diesel, fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas for vehicles, and lubricants; and holds AmPm convenience stores and provides JetOil lubricant services.

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