UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of UL Solutions to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $88.10 to $87.80 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of UL Solutions in a report on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.60.

UL Solutions Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:ULS opened at $90.33 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.81, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.85. UL Solutions has a 12 month low of $52.40 and a 12 month high of $91.95.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $789.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $782.37 million. UL Solutions had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 31.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Analysts expect that UL Solutions will post 1.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UL Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $0.145 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. This is an increase from UL Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. UL Solutions’s payout ratio is 36.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UL Solutions

In related news, CEO Jennifer F. Scanlon sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.50, for a total transaction of $1,068,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 200,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,166,177. This trade represents a 5.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of UL Solutions

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in UL Solutions in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in UL Solutions by 3,070.0% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 634 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers bought a new stake in UL Solutions in the first quarter worth about $49,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in UL Solutions by 18.2% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 864 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in UL Solutions in the third quarter worth about $70,000.

UL Solutions Company Profile

UL Solutions (NYSE: ULS) is a global safety science company that provides testing, inspection, certification, advisory and digital solutions designed to help organizations manage risk, ensure regulatory compliance and drive innovation. With roots dating back to 1894 when it was founded as Underwriters’ Electrical Bureau, the company rebranded as UL Solutions following its initial public offering in 2022. Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, UL Solutions operates independently to serve a broad range of industries with an emphasis on product safety, performance and sustainability.

The company’s core services include standards development, product testing and certification for sectors such as building products, consumer electronics, automotive, life sciences, energy and industrial equipment.