Northern Trust Corp Acquires 29,755 Shares of Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI)

Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 373,754 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,755 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp’s holdings in Universal Technical Institute were worth $9,609,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Universal Technical Institute by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI purchased a new stake in Universal Technical Institute in the 4th quarter valued at about $79,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Universal Technical Institute in the 4th quarter valued at about $118,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Universal Technical Institute by 418.6% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,000 after buying an additional 6,337 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Universal Technical Institute in the 4th quarter valued at about $203,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Universal Technical Institute

In related news, EVP Sherrell Smith sold 39,446 shares of Universal Technical Institute stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.85, for a total value of $1,098,571.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 177,912 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,954,849.20. The trade was a 18.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director George W. Brochick sold 8,000 shares of Universal Technical Institute stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $220,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $963,360.03. This represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 128,024 shares of company stock worth $3,686,890 in the last quarter. Insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on UTI. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research note on Friday, March 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $31.00 price objective for the company. Lake Street Capital increased their price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Barrington Research increased their price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Northland Securities raised their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Universal Technical Institute Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of UTI stock opened at $34.58 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.07 and a 200-day moving average of $26.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Universal Technical Institute, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.66 and a 12-month high of $35.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.65, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.57.

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.07. Universal Technical Institute had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $207.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $196.63 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Universal Technical Institute, Inc. will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

About Universal Technical Institute

Universal Technical Institute, Inc provides transportation, skilled trades, and healthcare education programs in the United States. The company operates in two segments, UTI and Concorde. It offers certificate, diploma, or degree programs under various brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute, and MIAT College of Technology.