Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) Stock Price Breaks Above 50 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• UTI shares rose above their 50-day moving average of $20.80, reaching $22.68 before last trading at about $21.96.
• Analyst views are mixed: four rate the stock Buy and three Hold, producing a Moderate Buy consensus and a $42.33 average price target. Recent actions included a price-target cut from Truist and a downgrade to Hold from Texas Capital.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.67% of the shares; reported holdings changes included new positions by BlackRock and Punch & Associates and increased stakes by several other funds.

Universal Technical Institute Inc (NYSE:UTI - Get Free Report) shares crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $20.80 and traded as high as $22.68. Universal Technical Institute shares last traded at $21.9570, with a volume of 1,433,493 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UTI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Universal Technical Institute from $47.00 to $38.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Northland Securities set a $35.00 price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Texas Capital downgraded shares of Universal Technical Institute from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Universal Technical Institute from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.33.

Universal Technical Institute Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.04. The stock has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 35.41, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.18.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Technical Institute

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UTI. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $323,080,000. Royce & Associates LP increased its position in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 12.1% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,343,507 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,083,000 after buying an additional 145,363 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 0.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,296,989 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,826,000 after buying an additional 9,153 shares in the last quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Universal Technical Institute in the second quarter valued at $46,879,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 18.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,075,771 shares of the company's stock worth $46,011,000 after buying an additional 169,513 shares during the last quarter. 75.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Technical Institute Company Profile

Universal Technical Institute, Inc (UTI) is a provider of career-focused postsecondary education and training. Founded in 1965, the company prepares students for careers in transportation, skilled trades and health care through campus-based and online programs.

UTI's transportation and skilled-trades programs cover areas such as automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine technology, welding, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, and robotics and automation. Programs are offered through brands including Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute and MIAT College of Technology.

Through its Concorde Career Colleges subsidiary, UTI also provides health care education and training.

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