Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) Reaches New 1-Year High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Ultrapar Participações reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $7.63 and recently at $7.595. MarketBeat analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $6.54.
• The company slightly beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.28 in EPS versus the $0.27 consensus, though revenue of $8 billion fell short of the $8.18 billion estimate.
• Ultrapar paid a $0.1932 dividend, while insiders sold 38,585 shares worth approximately $286,648 over the past 90 days. Institutional investors own 3.58% of the company.

Ultrapar Participacoes S.A. (NYSE:UGP - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $7.63 and last traded at $7.5950, with a volume of 248260 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $7.58.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lowered Ultrapar Participacoes from a "sector outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Ultrapar Participacoes from $6.50 to $5.80 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Bank of America raised shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $6.80 to $7.40 in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from $7.20 to $7.90 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $6.54.

Ultrapar Participacoes Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The business's 50-day moving average is $6.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.81. The company has a market capitalization of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.73.

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The oil and gas company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.18 billion. Ultrapar Participacoes had a net margin of 2.28% and a return on equity of 18.84%. As a group, analysts predict that Ultrapar Participacoes S.A. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Ultrapar Participacoes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 26th were paid a $0.1932 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 599.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 26th. Ultrapar Participacoes's payout ratio is presently 50.82%.

Insider Activity at Ultrapar Participacoes

In other news, CEO Decio De Sampaio Amaral sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.93, for a total value of $55,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 151,432 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,049,423.76. This represents a 5.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Pedro Guedes Rabelo sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.58, for a total value of $227,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 57,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $438,866.84. The trade was a 34.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,585 shares of company stock valued at $286,648. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UGP. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes by 419.7% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 257,957 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 208,319 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes during the second quarter valued at about $212,000. Nykredit A S bought a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes during the second quarter valued at about $93,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes during the second quarter valued at about $6,704,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP increased its holdings in Ultrapar Participacoes by 2.7% during the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 62,497 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 1,651 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 3.58% of the company's stock.

Ultrapar Participacoes Company Profile

Ultrapar Participações SA is a Brazilian holding company with operations focused on fuel distribution, liquefied petroleum gas and bulk liquid storage. The company traces its origins to 1937, when it was established as Companhia Brasileira de Gás a Domicílio, the predecessor of Ultragaz. Ultrapar's American depositary shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol UGP.

Its principal businesses include Ipiranga, a fuel distribution company that supplies gasoline, ethanol, diesel and other fuels through a nationwide network of service stations.

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