Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Universal Technical Institute Inc (NYSE:UTI)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $21.47, but opened at $20.34. Universal Technical Institute shares last traded at $19.9850, with a volume of 208,140 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Universal Technical Institute from $47.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Universal Technical Institute from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. B. Riley Financial decreased their price target on shares of Universal Technical Institute from $49.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Universal Technical Institute in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.83.

Universal Technical Institute Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $29.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.52.

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.02. Universal Technical Institute had a net margin of 3.88% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The company had revenue of $218.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.40 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Universal Technical Institute Inc will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Universal Technical Institute

In related news, CEO Jerome Grant sold 94,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.40, for a total value of $3,912,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 335,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,898,601. This represents a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 9.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Universal Technical Institute

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UTI. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Universal Technical Institute in the 2nd quarter valued at $12,135,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Universal Technical Institute during the 2nd quarter worth $13,471,000. Needham Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Universal Technical Institute by 46.8% during the 4th quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 807,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,100,000 after acquiring an additional 257,500 shares during the last quarter. MYDA Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Universal Technical Institute during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,322,000. Finally, Manatuck Hill Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Technical Institute by 342.8% during the fourth quarter. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC now owns 264,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,919,000 after acquiring an additional 205,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.67% of the company’s stock.

About Universal Technical Institute

Universal Technical Institute, Inc (NYSE: UTI) is a provider of postsecondary education and training for careers in the transportation, skilled trades and energy industries. The company offers programs in automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, marine, welding, CNC machining, wind energy and other technical fields, combining classroom instruction with hands-on laboratory experience.

Universal Technical Institute operates through a portfolio of specialized school brands, including Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute and MIAT College of Technology.