Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Takes Position in UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new position in UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 649,814 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $18,344,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of UGI by 33.0% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 203,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,087,000 after purchasing an additional 50,485 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in UGI by 42.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,418,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $235,660,000 after buying an additional 2,786,878 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of UGI by 35.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,227,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,718,000 after buying an additional 318,655 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UGI by 254.3% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 181,687 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,138,000 after buying an additional 130,407 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of UGI by 47.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,503,214 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $62,630,000 after acquiring an additional 808,113 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UGI news, insider Michael Sharp acquired 4,806 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $33.30 per share, for a total transaction of $160,039.80. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,806 shares in the company, valued at $160,039.80. The trade was a ? increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

UGI Stock Performance

NYSE UGI opened at $32.88 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.82. UGI Co. has a 1 year low of $22.01 and a 1 year high of $34.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.17.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.16. UGI had a net margin of 7.73% and a return on equity of 15.19%. Analysts predict that UGI Co. will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UGI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.56%. UGI’s dividend payout ratio is 59.06%.

About UGI

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.