UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS) Rating Increased to Hold at BNP Paribas Exane

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane upgraded UL Solutions to a "hold"; the stock's consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $88.42 (1 Strong Buy, 4 Buy, 6 Hold).
• UL Solutions beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $0.53 (vs. $0.46 est.) and revenue of $789M (+6.8% YoY); the shares opened at $92.10 and the company has a market cap of $18.52B and a P/E of about 58.
• CEO Jennifer F. Scanlon sold 12,500 shares on April 1 at an average price of $85.50 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plan, with insiders owning roughly 1.20% of the stock.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at BNP Paribas Exane to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on ULS. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of UL Solutions from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $88.10 to $87.80 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Zacks Research raised shares of UL Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of UL Solutions in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UL Solutions currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.42.

UL Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ULS opened at $92.10 on Monday. The company's 50-day moving average is $82.84 and its 200 day moving average is $80.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company has a market capitalization of $18.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.77. UL Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $53.44 and a fifty-two week high of $94.04.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $789.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $782.37 million. UL Solutions had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 31.62%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that UL Solutions will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at UL Solutions

In other news, CEO Jennifer F. Scanlon sold 12,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.50, for a total transaction of $1,068,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 200,774 shares in the company, valued at $17,166,177. This represents a 5.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UL Solutions

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the first quarter valued at about $291,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the first quarter valued at about $1,920,000. Tranquility Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the first quarter valued at about $279,000. Andina Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the first quarter valued at about $417,000. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the first quarter valued at about $1,896,000.

UL Solutions Company Profile

UL Solutions NYSE: ULS is a global safety science company that provides testing, inspection, certification, advisory and digital solutions designed to help organizations manage risk, ensure regulatory compliance and drive innovation. With roots dating back to 1894 when it was founded as Underwriters' Electrical Bureau, the company rebranded as UL Solutions following its initial public offering in 2022. Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, UL Solutions operates independently to serve a broad range of industries with an emphasis on product safety, performance and sustainability.

The company's core services include standards development, product testing and certification for sectors such as building products, consumer electronics, automotive, life sciences, energy and industrial equipment.

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