LPL Financial LLC Cuts Stake in UL Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ULS)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its position in UL Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ULS) by 15.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,990 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,080 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in UL Solutions were worth $847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ULS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of UL Solutions by 29.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,516,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,658,000 after buying an additional 1,022,851 shares during the last quarter. Burkehill Global Management LP bought a new position in UL Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $24,940,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in UL Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $18,345,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of UL Solutions by 55.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 600,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,639,000 after purchasing an additional 213,635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of UL Solutions by 85.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 269,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,292,000 after purchasing an additional 124,116 shares during the last quarter.

UL Solutions Stock Down 4.4 %

ULS opened at $53.22 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.86. The company has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion and a PE ratio of 32.85. UL Solutions Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.50 and a 1-year high of $59.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $739.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $726.54 million. UL Solutions had a return on equity of 44.52% and a net margin of 11.36%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that UL Solutions Inc. will post 1.69 EPS for the current year.

UL Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is a boost from UL Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. UL Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Alberto Uggetti sold 1,938 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total transaction of $102,714.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,285 shares in the company, valued at approximately $492,105. This trade represents a 17.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ULS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on UL Solutions from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of UL Solutions from $60.00 to $60.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.45.

UL Solutions Profile

UL Solutions Inc provides safety science services worldwide. It operates through three segments: Industrial, Consumer, and Software and Advisory. The Industrial segment provides testing, inspection, and certification services across various end markets, including energy, industrial automation, engineered materials, and built environment, as well as stakeholders, such as manufacturers, building owners, end users, and regulators.