Insider Selling: UGI (NYSE:UGI) Insider Sells $852,603.20 in Stock

UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI) insider Kathleen Shea-Ballay sold 25,360 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.62, for a total transaction of $852,603.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852,603.20. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

UGI Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of UGI opened at $35.09 on Friday. UGI Corporation has a 1-year low of $31.62 and a 1-year high of $41.34. The company has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.75.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. UGI had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 8.71%.UGI’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.21 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that UGI Corporation will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UGI Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. UGI’s payout ratio is 52.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UGI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised UGI from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $40.00 price objective (down from $45.00) on shares of UGI in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on UGI in a report on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $46.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UGI presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UGI

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in UGI by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,191,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $119,456,000 after purchasing an additional 327,511 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in UGI by 14.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 930,787 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,781,000 after buying an additional 116,372 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in UGI by 17.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 785,327 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,971,000 after buying an additional 115,409 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of UGI by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 227,467 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,514,000 after buying an additional 18,652 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. grew its stake in shares of UGI by 9.2% during the first quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 180,398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,570,000 after buying an additional 15,211 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

About UGI

UGI Corporation (NYSE: UGI) is a publicly traded energy distribution company headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1882 as the United Gas Improvement Company, UGI has grown into a diversified provider of energy products and services. The company’s operations are organized into three primary segments—AmeriGas Propane, UGI Utilities and UGI International—each focused on the delivery of propane, natural gas and related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

AmeriGas Propane, UGI’s largest segment, is the leading retail propane distributor in the United States with a network of dealers serving customers in all 50 states.