Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in UL Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ULS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UL Solutions Inc. (NYSE:ULS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 367,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,345,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of UL Solutions at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ULS. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of UL Solutions by 653.9% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 671 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its stake in UL Solutions by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 2,100 shares of the company's stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. KBC Group NV acquired a new position in UL Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $163,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UL Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $221,000. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UL Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $201,000.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Alberto Uggetti sold 1,938 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $102,714.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $492,105. This represents a 17.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ULS has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on UL Solutions from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of UL Solutions from $60.00 to $60.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of UL Solutions from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.45.

UL Solutions Stock Up 1.8 %

UL Solutions stock traded up $0.99 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $56.50. 927,360 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 705,264. The company's 50-day moving average is $54.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.31. UL Solutions Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.50 and a 52-week high of $59.23. The firm has a market cap of $11.31 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.88.

UL Solutions (NYSE:ULS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $739.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $726.54 million. UL Solutions had a return on equity of 44.52% and a net margin of 11.36%. On average, analysts predict that UL Solutions Inc. will post 1.69 earnings per share for the current year.

UL Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is an increase from UL Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. UL Solutions's payout ratio is 32.10%.

UL Solutions Company Profile

UL Solutions Inc provides safety science services worldwide. It operates through three segments: Industrial, Consumer, and Software and Advisory. The Industrial segment provides testing, inspection, and certification services across various end markets, including energy, industrial automation, engineered materials, and built environment, as well as stakeholders, such as manufacturers, building owners, end users, and regulators.