Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) Short Interest Update

Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 816,100 shares, a decrease of 18.1% from the September 30th total of 996,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,230,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ultrapar Participações

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UGP. D Orazio & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Ultrapar Participações in the first quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações in the 1st quarter valued at $80,000. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. acquired a new position in Ultrapar Participações during the 2nd quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Ultrapar Participações by 567.5% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 15,833 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 13,461 shares during the period. 3.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultrapar Participações Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of Ultrapar Participações stock opened at $3.54 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3.97 and a 200 day moving average of $4.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.81, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.60. Ultrapar Participações has a fifty-two week low of $3.51 and a fifty-two week high of $6.34.

Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08. The business 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Ultrapar Participações will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Ultrapar Participações Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. Ultrapar Participações’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UGP has been the topic of several recent research reports. HSBC upgraded Ultrapar Participações from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Ultrapar Participações from $5.90 to $5.20 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Ultrapar Participações from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Ultrapar Participações from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ultrapar Participações presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.20.

About Ultrapar Participações

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.