Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI) Short Interest Update

Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,030,000 shares, a decrease of 19.5% from the November 30th total of 1,280,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 430,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kenneth R. Trammell sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.92, for a total transaction of $777,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 128,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,323,073.60. This represents a 18.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 27.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Technical Institute

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UTI. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Universal Technical Institute by 6,256.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,564 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Universal Technical Institute by 380.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 3,056 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Universal Technical Institute by 1,526.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,065 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 3,815 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Universal Technical Institute during the 3rd quarter valued at $152,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 95,120.0% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 9,512 shares during the period. 75.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UTI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Universal Technical Institute from $22.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Lake Street Capital upped their target price on Universal Technical Institute from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. B. Riley lifted their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Barrington Research lifted their price target on Universal Technical Institute from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Northland Securities increased their price objective on Universal Technical Institute from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.33.

Universal Technical Institute Price Performance

Shares of UTI stock traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $25.87. 377,875 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 528,723. Universal Technical Institute has a 12-month low of $12.14 and a 12-month high of $26.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.56. The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a PE ratio of 34.96, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.48.

Universal Technical Institute Company Profile

Universal Technical Institute, Inc provides transportation, skilled trades, and healthcare education programs in the United States. The company operates in two segments, UTI and Concorde. It offers certificate, diploma, or degree programs under various brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute, and MIAT College of Technology.