The Goldman Sachs Group Downgrades Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) to Neutral

Ultrapar Participacoes (NYSE:UGP) was downgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. They presently have a $5.40 price objective on the oil and gas company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 5.99% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised Ultrapar Participacoes from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $5.40.

Ultrapar Participacoes Stock Up 3.3%

NYSE UGP opened at $5.10 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ultrapar Participacoes has a fifty-two week low of $2.64 and a fifty-two week high of $5.10. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $4.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.86. The stock has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a PE ratio of 10.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.84.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Ultrapar Participacoes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,131,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Ultrapar Participacoes by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 63,023 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 5,362 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda boosted its holdings in Ultrapar Participacoes by 350.7% in the fourth quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda now owns 874,882 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 680,782 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC acquired a new position in Ultrapar Participacoes in the fourth quarter worth $61,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new stake in Ultrapar Participacoes during the fourth quarter valued at $73,000. Institutional investors own 3.58% of the company’s stock.

About Ultrapar Participacoes

Ultrapar Participações SA is a Brazilian diversified holding company operating in the downstream energy and chemical sectors. Its Ipiranga unit runs one of Brazil’s largest networks of fuel stations, supplying gasoline, ethanol, diesel and convenience-store products to retail and wholesale customers. Through Ultragaz, the company is a leading distributor of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), offering cylinder and bulk gas solutions for residential, commercial and industrial use across urban and rural regions.

In the specialty chemicals arena, Ultrapar controls Oxiteno, which produces surfactants and specialty chemical formulations for industries such as personal care, oil and gas, agrochemicals and coatings.