UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.38

UGI Co. (NYSE:UGI) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, November 22nd,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of 0.375 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, January 1st. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th.

UGI has raised its dividend payment by an average of 4.1% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 36 consecutive years. UGI has a dividend payout ratio of 50.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect UGI to earn $3.14 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 47.8%.

UGI Trading Up 15.0 %

Shares of NYSE UGI traded up $3.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $28.50. The stock had a trading volume of 8,686,470 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,146,317. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. UGI has a 1-year low of $21.51 and a 1-year high of $28.66. The company has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.35 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.07.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UGI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of UGI from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of UGI in a report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho upgraded UGI from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $27.00 to $30.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered UGI from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $28.33.

About UGI

UGI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, distributes, stores, transports, and markets energy products and related services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: AmeriGas Propane, UGI International, Midstream & Marketing, and UGI Utilities. It distributes propane to approximately 1.3 million residential, commercial/industrial, motor fuel, agricultural, and wholesale customers through 1,400 propane distribution locations.