UGI Corporation Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.38 (NYSE:UGI)

UGI Corporation (NYSE:UGI) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 4th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of 0.375 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th.

UGI has raised its dividend by an average of 0.0%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 37 consecutive years. UGI has a payout ratio of 47.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect UGI to earn $3.09 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.50 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 48.5%.

UGI Stock Down 3.0%

Shares of UGI opened at $39.18 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.60 and a beta of 1.08. UGI has a 12-month low of $29.03 and a 12-month high of $41.34. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $38.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

UGI (NYSE:UGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.50 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. UGI had a net margin of 9.30% and a return on equity of 15.07%. UGI’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.37 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that UGI will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho upped their target price on UGI from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of UGI in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wall Street Zen cut UGI from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of UGI from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of UGI in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UGI currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.50.

UGI Company Profile

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.