The following are today's upgrades for Validea's P/E/Growth Investor model based on the published strategy of Peter Lynch. This strategy looks for stocks trading at a reasonable price relative to earnings growth that also possess strong balance sheets.
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. (UTI) is a small-cap growth stock in the Schools industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Peter Lynch changed from 72% to 74% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Universal Technical Institute, Inc. is a workforce solutions provider of transportation, skilled trades and healthcare education programs. Its segments include Universal Technical Institute (UTI) and Concorde Career Colleges (Concorde). UTI segment operates 16 campuses located in nine states and offers a range of degree and non-degree transportation and skilled trades technical training programs under brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute, and MIAT College of Technology. UTI also offers manufacturer specific advanced training programs, including student-paid electives, at its campuses and manufacturer or dealer-sponsored training at certain campuses and dedicated training centers. Concorde segment operates 17 campuses located in eight states and online, offering degree, non-degree, and continuing education programs in the allied health, dental, nursing, patient care and diagnostic fields.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| P/E/GROWTH RATIO: | PASS |
| SALES AND P/E RATIO: | NEUTRAL |
| EPS GROWTH RATE: | FAIL |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| FREE CASH FLOW: | NEUTRAL |
| NET CASH POSITION: | NEUTRAL |
Detailed Analysis of UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
About Peter Lynch: Perhaps the greatest mutual fund manager of all-time, Lynch guided Fidelity Investment's Magellan Fund to a 29.2 percent average annual return from 1977 until his retirement in 1990, almost doubling the S&P 500's 15.8 percent yearly return over that time. Lynch's common sense approach and quick wit made him one of the most quoted investors on Wall Street. ("Go for a business that any idiot can run -- because sooner or later, any idiot probably is going to run it," is one of his many pearls of wisdom.) Lynch's bestseller One Up on Wall Street is something of a "stocks for the everyman/everywoman", breaking his approach down into easy-to-understand concepts.
About Validea: Validea is aninvestment researchservice that follows the published strategies of investment legends. Validea offers both stock analysis and model portfolios based on gurus who have outperformed the market over the long-term, including Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Peter Lynch and Martin Zweig. For more information about Validea, click here
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
