UGI (NYSE:UGI) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $33.58 and last traded at $33.14, with a volume of 214000 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $32.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on UGI shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of UGI in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho raised shares of UGI from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $30.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.33.

UGI Trading Up 1.5 %

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The company has a market cap of $7.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.21.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.16. UGI had a return on equity of 15.19% and a net margin of 7.73%. On average, equities analysts predict that UGI Co. will post 3.02 EPS for the current year.

UGI Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. UGI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UGI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in UGI by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 203,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,087,000 after buying an additional 50,485 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of UGI by 2,402.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 26,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 25,005 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of UGI by 42.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,418,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $235,660,000 after buying an additional 2,786,878 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in UGI by 35.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,227,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,718,000 after acquiring an additional 318,655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commerce Bank bought a new stake in UGI during the third quarter valued at $645,000. 82.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.