Ameriprise Financial Inc. Increases Holdings in UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) by 50.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,366,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 795,093 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.’s holdings in UGI were worth $66,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in UGI by 216.7% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in UGI during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new stake in UGI in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. S.A. Mason LLC purchased a new stake in UGI in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of UGI during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

UGI Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of UGI stock opened at $35.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.05. UGI Co. has a 12-month low of $22.01 and a 12-month high of $35.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $32.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.03.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $2.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. UGI had a return on equity of 15.19% and a net margin of 7.73%. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.97 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that UGI Co. will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UGI Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.28%. UGI’s payout ratio is currently 59.06%.

Insider Transactions at UGI

In related news, insider Michael Sharp purchased 4,806 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $33.30 per share, for a total transaction of $160,039.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,806 shares in the company, valued at approximately $160,039.80. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

UGI Company Profile

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.