109,330 Shares in Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) Acquired by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Ultrapar Participações S.A. (NYSE:UGP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 109,330 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $288,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ultrapar Participações in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Ultrapar Participações by 162.2% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 599,642 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,577,000 after buying an additional 370,960 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 763.8% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,374,747 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,616,000 after acquiring an additional 1,215,605 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ultrapar Participações in the 4th quarter valued at about $253,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Ultrapar Participações by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 31,534 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 6,882 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UGP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. HSBC raised Ultrapar Participações from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Scotiabank raised shares of Ultrapar Participações to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ultrapar Participações from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Hsbc Global Res raised Ultrapar Participações from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Ultrapar Participações from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $4.10 to $3.20 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ultrapar Participações presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3.20.

Ultrapar Participações Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE:UGP opened at $3.17 on Friday. Ultrapar Participações S.A. has a 1-year low of $2.53 and a 1-year high of $5.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $2.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.04.

Ultrapar Participações Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.0774 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.8%. Ultrapar Participações’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Ultrapar Participações 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.