UGI (NYSE:UGI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $33.62 and last traded at $33.57, with a volume of 144547 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on UGI. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on UGI in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho upgraded UGI from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $30.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th.

UGI Trading Up 2.8 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.16. UGI had a return on equity of 15.19% and a net margin of 7.73%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UGI Co. will post 3.02 earnings per share 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 issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.39%. UGI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.06%.

Institutional Trading of UGI

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AIA Group Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of UGI by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 18,047 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in UGI by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 10,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming raised its holdings in UGI by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 10,005 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in UGI by 0.8% during the third quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 59,238 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hourglass Capital LLC raised its holdings in UGI by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Hourglass Capital LLC now owns 82,520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,330,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. 82.34% of the stock is currently owned by 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.