UGI (NYSE:UGI) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $30.60 and last traded at $30.60, with a volume of 1980 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $30.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on UGI. Mizuho upgraded UGI from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $27.00 to $30.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com downgraded UGI from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on UGI in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.33.

UGI Trading Up 0.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.49 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50-day moving average of $24.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.27.

UGI Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. UGI’s dividend payout ratio is presently 120.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UGI

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UGI. FMR LLC increased its stake in UGI by 42.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,418,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $235,660,000 after acquiring an additional 2,786,878 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in UGI by 33.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,762,970 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $127,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202,938 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of UGI by 28.7% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,537,729 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $81,014,000 after purchasing an additional 788,457 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of UGI by 13.3% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 3,024,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $69,267,000 after buying an additional 356,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of UGI by 47.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,503,214 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $62,630,000 after buying an additional 808,113 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

UGI Company Profile

UGI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, distributes, stores, transports, and markets energy products and related services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: AmeriGas Propane, UGI International, Midstream & Marketing, and UGI Utilities. It distributes propane to approximately 1.3 million residential, commercial/industrial, motor fuel, agricultural, and wholesale customers through 1,400 propane distribution locations.