Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Suburban Propane Partners from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Suburban Propane Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Suburban Propane Partners Stock Performance

NYSE:SPH opened at $17.40 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a PE ratio of 8.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.41. Suburban Propane Partners has a fifty-two week low of $16.53 and a fifty-two week high of $20.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.78. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $17.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.94.

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by ($0.11). Suburban Propane Partners had a return on equity of 18.57% and a net margin of 9.37%.The firm had revenue of $261.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $255.00 million. Equities research analysts predict that Suburban Propane Partners will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Suburban Propane Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 4th. Suburban Propane Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Bryon L. Koepke sold 2,848 shares of Suburban Propane Partners stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total value of $50,267.20. Following the sale, the vice president owned 100,714 shares in the company, valued at $1,777,602.10. The trade was a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPH. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 15,051,196 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $279,049,000 after purchasing an additional 724,170 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 4.8% during the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 4,177,601 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $77,912,000 after buying an additional 192,154 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Suburban Propane Partners by 11.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,370,534 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $28,795,000 after buying an additional 142,547 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Suburban Propane Partners by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,314,268 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $24,367,000 after buying an additional 61,818 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 32.1% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 466,798 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $8,654,000 after purchasing an additional 113,396 shares during the period. 30.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Suburban Propane Partners

Suburban Propane Partners L.P. (NYSE: SPH) is a publicly traded master limited partnership headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey, that provides propane and related energy services to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers. As one of the largest propane retailers in the United States, the company delivers propane gas, heating oil, diesel fuel and natural gas throughout its service territories. In addition to fuel distribution, Suburban Propane offers HVAC installation, maintenance and repair services, as well as safety inspections and equipment leasing to support customers’ energy needs.

The company’s core business centers on the delivery of propane for space and water heating, cooking and agricultural applications.