Perritt Capital Management Inc Lowers Stake in Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI)

Perritt Capital Management Inc reduced its position in Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (NYSE:UTI) by 21.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 38,100 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,166 shares during the quarter. Perritt Capital Management Inc owned approximately 0.07% of Universal Technical Institute worth $980,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UTI. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Universal Technical Institute by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,745,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,591,000 after buying an additional 44,103 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 973,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,020,000 after acquiring an additional 136,642 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 9.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 952,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,496,000 after acquiring an additional 85,417 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Technical Institute by 73,048.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 879,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,296,000 after purchasing an additional 878,038 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in Universal Technical Institute by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 856,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,920,000 after purchasing an additional 29,461 shares during the period. 75.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UTI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. B. Riley started coverage on Universal Technical Institute in a research note on Friday, March 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $31.00 price target for the company. Barrington Research upped their target price on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Northland Securities lifted their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Lake Street Capital boosted their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $22.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their target price on Universal Technical Institute from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Technical Institute currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $32.17.

Insider Activity at Universal Technical Institute

In other news, EVP Sherrell Smith sold 36,773 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.68, for a total value of $981,103.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 227,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,065,911.44. This represents a 13.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director George W. Brochick sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $220,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $963,360.03. This trade represents a 18.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 94,219 shares of company stock worth $2,569,895. Company insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Universal Technical Institute Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UTI opened at $25.91 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.71, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.49. Universal Technical Institute, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.66 and a 52 week high of $30.56.

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.22. Universal Technical Institute had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 7.08%. On average, analysts expect that Universal Technical Institute, Inc. will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Technical Institute Profile

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.