Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) Price Target Raised to $7.90

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $7.20 to $7.90 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 9.65% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on UGP. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America raised shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $6.80 to $7.40 in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Ultrapar Participacoes from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from $6.50 to $5.80 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.54.

Ultrapar Participacoes Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Ultrapar Participacoes stock opened at $7.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.73. Ultrapar Participacoes has a 52-week low of $3.60 and a 52-week high of $7.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.64. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $6.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.65.

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The oil and gas company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.01. Ultrapar Participacoes had a net margin of 2.28% and a return on equity of 18.84%. The firm had revenue of $8 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.18 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Ultrapar Participacoes will post 0.78 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Decio De Sampaio Amaral sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.93, for a total value of $55,440.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 151,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,049,423.76. This trade represents a 5.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ultrapar Participacoes

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UGP. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes by 42,357.3% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,147,914 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,098,000 after acquiring an additional 2,142,855 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Ultrapar Participacoes by 306.4% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,796,662 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,466,000 after purchasing an additional 2,108,543 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes by 98.2% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,214,612 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $15,889,000 after buying an additional 2,087,852 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can bought a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,876,000. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Ultrapar Participacoes by 131.9% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,890,033 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,849,000 after buying an additional 1,643,562 shares during the period. 3.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ultrapar Participacoes Company Profile

Ultrapar Participações SA is a Brazilian diversified holding company operating in the downstream energy and chemical sectors. Its Ipiranga unit runs one of Brazil’s largest networks of fuel stations, supplying gasoline, ethanol, diesel and convenience-store products to retail and wholesale customers. Through Ultragaz, the company is a leading distributor of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), offering cylinder and bulk gas solutions for residential, commercial and industrial use across urban and rural regions.

In the specialty chemicals arena, Ultrapar controls Oxiteno, which produces surfactants and specialty chemical formulations for industries such as personal care, oil and gas, agrochemicals and coatings.