Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) Sets New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

Key Points

• Suburban Propane Partners fell to a new 52-week low of $16.48, trading about 1.2% lower with the stock below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment weakened as Zacks Research and Wall Street Zen downgraded the shares to “Hold,” while the company’s latest quarterly EPS loss of $0.26 missed expectations of a $0.15 loss. Despite this, the consensus rating remains “Moderate Buy.”
• The partnership continues to offer a quarterly dividend of $0.325 per share, or $1.30 annually, representing a 7.9% yield and a 66.33% payout ratio.

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $16.48 and last traded at $16.5130, with a volume of 24247 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.57.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on SPH shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Suburban Propane Partners from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Suburban Propane Partners from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Suburban Propane Partners from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Suburban Propane Partners currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Suburban Propane Partners Trading Down 1.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.71 and a 200-day moving average of $18.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72.

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.15) by ($0.11). Suburban Propane Partners had a return on equity of 18.57% and a net margin of 9.37%.The firm had revenue of $261.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $255.00 million. On average, research analysts predict that Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

Suburban Propane Partners Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were given a dividend of $0.325 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.9%. Suburban Propane Partners's dividend payout ratio is currently 66.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Suburban Propane Partners

In related news, VP Bryon Koepke sold 2,848 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total transaction of $50,267.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 100,714 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,777,602.10. This represents a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SPH. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 15,051,196 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $279,049,000 after purchasing an additional 724,170 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its position in Suburban Propane Partners by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 33,573 shares of the energy company's stock worth $622,000 after buying an additional 10,722 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstar Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Suburban Propane Partners by 4.7% during the second quarter. Wealthstar Advisors LLC now owns 34,162 shares of the energy company's stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 1,538 shares during the period. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Suburban Propane Partners during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 25.8% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 72,757 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,433,000 after acquiring an additional 14,908 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 30.94% of the company's stock.

Suburban Propane Partners Company Profile

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. NYSE: SPH is an energy distributor and marketer that supplies propane, fuel oil, and other refined fuels to residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, and government customers. The company also markets natural gas and electricity and provides related energy services.

Its offerings include propane delivery for home heating, cooking, and equipment operation, as well as fuel delivery and services for businesses and agricultural users. Suburban Propane also sells and services heating equipment, propane-powered appliances, and hearth products, and provides installation, maintenance, and repair services in selected markets.

The company traces its history to 1928 and operates through a network serving customers across approximately 42 states, primarily in the United States.

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