EMC Capital Management Increases Stake in UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI)

EMC Capital Management grew its position in UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) by 53.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,488 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,306 shares during the quarter. EMC Capital Management’s holdings in UGI were worth $233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Easterly Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in UGI in the first quarter valued at about $1,005,000. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in UGI by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc now owns 652,439 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,050,000 after buying an additional 59,543 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in shares of UGI by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 356,432 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,768,000 after acquiring an additional 137,114 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of UGI by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,757,212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,121,000 after buying an additional 83,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of UGI by 57.5% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 523,873 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,856,000 after purchasing an additional 191,260 shares during the period. 82.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of UGI from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Mizuho raised their target price on UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of UGI from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th.

UGI Stock Down 0.9 %

UGI stock traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.69. 1,460,953 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,243,683. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $23.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.01. UGI Co. has a 52-week low of $20.19 and a 52-week high of $26.26.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.32. UGI had a negative net margin of 0.89% and a positive return on equity of 15.78%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that UGI Co. will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

About UGI

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.