Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $4.25.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on UGP shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Ultrapar Participações from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. HSBC raised Ultrapar Participações from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Ultrapar Participações from $5.90 to $5.20 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com cut Ultrapar Participações from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Ultrapar Participações from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Ultrapar Participações by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,764,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,713,000 after acquiring an additional 293,036 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 57.9% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,450,300 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $9,581,000 after acquiring an additional 898,600 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Ultrapar Participações during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,887,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 332.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,429,946 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,099,433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 27.3% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 441,527 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,726,000 after buying an additional 94,761 shares in the last quarter. 3.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultrapar Participações Price Performance

Shares of UGP stock opened at $4.07 on Friday. Ultrapar Participações has a 1-year low of $3.39 and a 1-year high of $6.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $4.16 and its 200 day moving average is $4.73. The company has a market cap of $4.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.48, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter. Ultrapar Participações had a return on equity of 20.24% and a net margin of 2.21%. Research analysts predict that Ultrapar Participações will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ultrapar Participações Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.0446 per share. This represents a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. Ultrapar Participações’s payout ratio is 16.67%.

Ultrapar Participações Company Profile

Ultrapar Participações SA, through its subsidiaries, operates in the energy and infrastructure business in Brazil. The company distributes liquefied petroleum gas to residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, in addition to renewable electricity and compressed natural gas. It also operates in the distribution and marketing of gasoline, ethanol, diesel, fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas for vehicles, and lubricants; and holds AmPm convenience stores and provides JetOil lubricant services.