Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) Trading Down 6.4% – Time to Sell?

Ultrapar Participacoes S.A. (NYSE:UGP) shares fell 6.4% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $3.74 and last traded at $3.7450. 1,206,973 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average session volume of 1,957,405 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UGP has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Ultrapar Participacoes from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.50.

Ultrapar Participacoes Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.58.

Ultrapar Participacoes Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.1876 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Ultrapar Participacoes’s dividend payout ratio is 59.57%.

Institutional Trading of Ultrapar Participacoes

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in Ultrapar Participacoes during the third quarter valued at approximately $14,639,000. Laurion Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes during the 3rd quarter worth about $64,000. PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes during the 3rd quarter valued at about $116,000. Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes in the third quarter valued at about $76,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes by 306.4% in 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 acquiring an additional 2,108,543 shares during the last quarter. 3.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultrapar Participacoes Company Profile

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.