UGI Q4 Loss Narrower Than Expected, Revenues Miss Estimates

UGI Corporation UGI reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 operating loss of 16 cents per share, which was narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 30 cents. In the year-ago quarter, the company reported earnings of 3 cents per share.Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings CalendarTotal Revenues of UGIRevenues of $1.24 billion missed the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion by 19.5%. The top line also declined 11.5% from the year-ago quarter’s figure of $1.44 billion.UGI Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise UGI Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | UGI Corporation QuoteHighlights of UGI’s Q4 ReleaseUGI invested nearly $900 million in fiscal 2024, with 80% allocated in the aggregate to the regulated utilities, primarily for infrastructure replacement and betterment, and the Midstream and Marketing segment.The company continued with its legacy dividend payment. UGI paid dividends for the 140th consecutive year, delivering a 10-year compound annual growth rate of 6%.Courtesy of efficient management, UGI was able to reduce operation and maintenance expenses in fiscal 2024 by $75 million from the year-ago level.UGI’s Earnings before interest expense and income tax1 ("EBIT") for fiscal 2024 were nearly $1.18 billion compared with $1.16 billion in the prior year.UGI’s Segmental ResultsAmeriGas Propane: EBIT of $142 million in fiscal 2024 was down 47% from the year-ago level. Retail gallons sold during the year decreased 10% year over year due to warmer weather and continued customer attrition. Total margin decreased in fiscal 2024 due to lower retail propane volumes sold.UGI International: EBIT of $323 million in fiscal 2024 was up 38% year over year. Lower retail volume was offset by higher LPG unit margins and translation effects of the stronger foreign currencies.Midstream & Marketing: EBIT of $313 million in fiscal 2024 was up 7.6% year over year. The improvement was due to increased capacity management activities and lower operational and maintenance expenses.UGI Utilities: EBIT of $400 million in fiscal 2024 was up 9.6% year over year. The year-over-year improvement was due to the increases in gas and electric base rates and higher DSIC revenues, the impacts of growth in the core market customers and the weather.Guidance of UGIUGI anticipates fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings to be in the range of $2.75-$3.05 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $3.14 per share, which is higher than $2.90, the midpoint of the company’s guided range.The company plans to invest in the range of $800-$900 million in fiscal 2025 to further strengthen its operations.UGI’s long-term earnings growth rate is in the range of 4-6%. The company expected to invest in the range of $3.7 billion to $4.1 billion in the fiscal 2024 to 2027 period.UGI’s Zacks RankUGI currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Other ReleasesNational Fuel Gas Company NFG reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 adjusted operating earnings of 77 cents per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 83 cents by 7.2%. The bottom line also decreased 1.3% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure of 78 cents.The consensus estimate for NFG’s fiscal 2025 EPS is pegged at $5.69, which implies an increase of 13.57% from the year-earlier level.Southwest Gas Holdings Inc. SWX recorded third-quarter 2024 operating earnings of 9 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 7 cents by 28.6%. However, the bottom line decreased 47.1% from the year-ago quarter’s 17 cents.The consensus estimate for SWX’s 2024 EPS is pegged at $3.13 which implies a decline of 6.85% from the year-earlier level.ONE Gas, Inc. (OGS) reported third-quarter 2024 operating earnings per share of 34 cents, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 41 cents by 17.1%. The figure was 24.4% lower than the year-ago quarter’s earnings of 45 cents per share.The consensus estimates for OGS’ fiscal 2025 EPS is pegged at $3.87, which implies a decline of 6.52% from the year-earlier level. 5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2024. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +143.0%, +175.9%, +498.3% and +673.0%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX): Free Stock Analysis Report UGI Corporation (UGI): Free Stock Analysis Report National Fuel Gas Company (NFG): Free Stock Analysis Report ONE Gas, Inc. (OGS): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks