Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP) Upgraded at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações (NYSE:UGP) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $3.20 price objective on the oil and gas company’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $4.10.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on UGP. StockNews.com lowered Ultrapar Participações from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. HSBC upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ultrapar Participações from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ultrapar Participações presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3.20.

Ultrapar Participações Price Performance

UGP stock opened at $2.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.19, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.52. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $2.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.51. Ultrapar Participações has a 12-month low of $2.53 and a 12-month high of $6.34.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Ultrapar Participações by 16.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 303,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,187,000 after purchasing an additional 43,258 shares during the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 63.9% in the third quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 43,516 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $169,000 after buying an additional 16,967 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 54.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 283,247 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,099,000 after buying an additional 99,324 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 45.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 55,980 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $217,000 after acquiring an additional 17,430 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Ultrapar Participações by 85.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 65,295 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 30,096 shares during the last quarter. 3.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ultrapar Participações

Ultrapar Participações SA, through its subsidiaries, operates in the energy and infrastructure business in Brazil. The company distributes liquefied petroleum gas to residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, in addition to renewable electricity and compressed natural gas. It also operates in the distribution and marketing of gasoline, ethanol, diesel, fuel oil, kerosene, natural gas for vehicles, and lubricants; and holds AmPm convenience stores and provides JetOil lubricant services.