UTi Worldwide Inc. Stock Downgraded (UTIW)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- UTi Worldwide (Nasdaq:UTIW) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from buy to hold. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its increase in net income, good cash flow from operations and growth in earnings per share. However, as a counter to these strengths, we find that the stock has had a generally disappointing performance in the past year.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Air Freight & Logistics industry. The net income increased by 47.4% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from $8.74 million to $12.89 million.
• Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 76.51% to -$10.25 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, UTI WORLDWIDE INC has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of -62.29%.
• The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Air Freight & Logistics industry and the overall market on the basis of return on equity, UTI WORLDWIDE INC has outperformed in comparison with the industry average, but has underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500.
• Despite currently having a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, it is higher than that of the industry average, inferring that management of debt levels may need to be evaluated further. Regardless of the somewhat mixed results with the debt-to-equity ratio, the company's quick ratio of 1.27 is sturdy.
• UTIW has underperformed the S&P 500 Index, declining 19.20% from its price level of one year ago. Looking ahead, we do not see anything in this company's numbers that would change the one-year trend. It was down over the last twelve months; and it could be down again in the next twelve. Naturally, a bull or bear market could sway the movement of this stock.

UTi Worldwide Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a supply chain services and solutions company worldwide. Its supply chain planning and optimization services help its clients in designing and implementing solutions for their supply chains. The company has a P/E ratio of 17.9, equal to the average transportation industry P/E ratio and above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. UTi Worldwide has a market cap of $1.37 billion and is part of the services sector and transportation industry. Shares are down 2.1% year to date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

You can view the full UTi Worldwide Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

-- Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff

TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

For more information on UTi Worldwide Inc. click any of the following:

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• UTi Worldwide Inc. Earnings

• UTi Worldwide Inc. Ratio Comparison

• UTi Worldwide Inc. Growth Rates

• UTi Worldwide Inc. Balance Sheet

• UTi Worldwide Inc. Cash Flow

• UTi Worldwide Inc. Income Statement