Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. (NYSE:SPH) Maintains Distribution While Leverage Keeps Valuation Pressured

Suburban Propane presents a payout-stable profile despite stretched leverage and mixed operational momentum; near-term upside faces technical resistance even as valuation metrics signal over-valuation.

Recent News

On April 23, 2026 the Board declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.325 per common unit payable May 12, 2026 to holders of record May 5, 2026, maintaining the prior quarterly payout level.

Technical Analysis

Directional indicators present a bearish setup: DI+ shows a peak-and-reversal while DI– displays a dip-and-reversal, a combination that indicates selling pressure recently strengthened and bullish breadth cooled; ADX at 22.18 signals an emerging trend rather than a strong directional conviction, which limits the follow-through scope for trending moves.

MACD registers negative momentum and a peak-and-reversal, consistent with waning bullish momentum; however, the MACD value sits modestly above its signal line, representing a short-lived bullish crossover amid an otherwise weakening MACD profile, increasing the probability of range-bound price action rather than a sustained breakout.

MRO reads -30.1, indicating the current price sits below the model target and therefore carries measurable upside potential if fundamental drivers reassert themselves; the magnitude suggests moderate catch-up potential to valuation levels. Relating this to the valuation, upside implied by the oscillator collides with WMDST’s determination that the stock trades over-valued, implying any rally would need substantive fundamental validation to persist.

RSI near 49 with a peak-and-reversal shows momentum cooled from recent highs and lacks immediate directional bias; the indicator’s neutrality argues for consolidation near current levels unless directional indicators re-accelerate.

Price sits slightly above the 20-day average but below the 50-day average, with the 12-day EMA showing a recent peak-and-reversal. That structure, combined with volume above recent averages, favors a capped range; the super trend lower level around $19.00 provides a near-term technical support reference while the mean analyst price target at $18.53 sits below current price, reinforcing limited upside ambition from a technical perspective.

 


Fundamental Analysis

Revenue and margins: total revenue reached $370.39M. YoY revenue change shows a small decline of -4.70% and QoQ revenue contraction of -5.01%, reflecting near-term top-line pressure. Gross margin at 64.675% remains robust and expanded YoY by 6.758 percentage points, supporting operating leverage in core distribution activities.

Profitability: EBIT stands at $65.77M, giving an EBIT margin of 17.76%, which increased YoY by 67.42% but declined QoQ by -3.16 percentage points; compare that to the industry peer mean EBIT margin of 31.03% and industry peer median of 30.26%, where Suburban Propane ranks below the peer mean and median while comfortably above the industry low. Operating margin of 18.265% improved YoY by 72.21% but fell QoQ by -3.30%.

Earnings and cash flow: reported EPS $2.08 topped the prior estimate of $1.98 by $0.10, an EPS surprise of 5.05%. Net income totaled $45.78M. Free cash flow registered negative $67.47M, producing a free cash flow yield of -5.33%, materially below the industry peer mean free cash flow yield of 0.93%, and signaling operating cash conversion stress despite positive accounting earnings in the period. Operating cash flow totaled negative $47.67M and free cash flow growth shows contraction QoQ.

Leverage and liquidity: total debt $1.435B produces net debt roughly $1.321B and a debt-to-EBITDA ratio near 17.4x, reflecting a highly leveraged capital structure relative to cash flow coverage; debt-to-equity at 2.29x exceeds the industry peer mean of 1.63x. Interest coverage sits at 3.33x, below the industry peer mean of 4.25x, indicating tighter margin for interest obligations. Current ratio 0.87 and quick ratio 0.61 show liquidity below one, though current ratio remains similar to the industry peer mean (0.91). Dividend yield equals 1.69% with a payout ratio near 46.75% and a dividend coverage ratio of 2.14x, indicating distributions remain covered by earnings but cash flow metrics warrant monitoring.

Returns: return on equity stands at 7.31%, above the industry peer mean of 4.98%, demonstrating that equity-level returns outpace peers even as capital structure amplifies risk. Asset turnover at ~0.16x remains a structural characteristic of the business model and sits above the industry peer mean turnover of 0.1137x, supporting revenue generation from invested capital.

Valuation: WMDST values the stock as over-valued. Market multiples show a P/E around 27.3x and a price-to-book near 2.02x, with price-to-book below the industry peer mean of 3.07x but the enterprise multiple at ~32.67x sitting between industry peer low and mean—these mixed signals reflect solid operating margins but elevated leverage and negative free cash flow that compress the fundamental justification for the current market price.

MOST-RECENT QUARTERLY REPORT
REPORT PERIOD ENDING: 2025-12-31
REPORT DATE: 2026-05-07
NEXT REPORT DATE: 2026-08-06
CASH FLOW  Begin Period Cash Flow 11.8 M
 Operating Cash Flow -47.67 M
 Capital Expenditures -19.80 M
 Change In Working Capital -115.39 M
 Dividends Paid -21.40 M
 Cash Flow Delta -196.00 K
 End Period Cash Flow 11.6 M
 
INCOME STATEMENT REVENUE
 Total Revenue 370.4 M
 Forward Revenue 62.0 M
COSTS
 Cost Of Revenue 130.8 M
 Depreciation 16.9 M
 Depreciation and Amortization 16.9 M
 Research and Development
 Total Operating Expenses 302.7 M
PROFITABILITY
 Gross Profit 239.5 M
 EBITDA 82.6 M
 EBIT 65.8 M
 Operating Income 67.7 M
 Interest Income
 Interest Expense 19.8 M
 Net Interest Income -19.76 M
 Income Before Tax 46.0 M
 Tax Provision 231.0 K
 Tax Rate 0.502 %
 Net Income 45.8 M
 Net Income From Continuing Operations 45.8 M
EARNINGS
 EPS Estimate 1.98
 EPS Actual 2.08
 EPS Difference 0.10
 EPS Surprise 5.051 %
 Forward EPS 0.46
 
BALANCE SHEET ASSETS
 Total Assets 2.4 B
 Intangible Assets 1.3 B
 Net Tangible Assets -1.26 B
 Total Current Assets 236.0 M
 Cash and Short-Term Investments 1.3 M
 Cash 1.3 M
 Net Receivables 129.3 M
 Inventory 69.3 M
 Long-Term Investments 79.4 M
LIABILITIES
 Accounts Payable 47.9 M
 Short-Term Debt
 Total Current Liabilities 272.6 M
 Net Debt 1.3 B
 Total Debt 1.4 B
 Total Liabilities 1.8 B
EQUITY
 Total Equity 626.2 M
 Retained Earnings
VALUATION & PER-SHARE METRICS EQUITY & PER-SHARE METRICS
 Book Value Per-Share 9.44
 Shares Outstanding 66.329 M
 Revenue Per-Share 5.58
VALUATION
 Market Capitalization 1.3 B
 Enterprise Value 2.7 B
 Enterprise Multiple 32.673
Enterprise Multiple QoQ -98.42 %
Enterprise Multiple YoY -29.889 %
Enterprise Multiple IPRWA high: 59.048
mean: 41.633
median: 39.238
SPH: 32.673
low: 10.34
 EV/R 7.289
CAPITAL STRUCTURE
 Asset To Equity 3.826
 Asset To Liability 1.354
 Debt To Capital 0.696
 Debt To Assets 0.599
Debt To Assets QoQ 3.43 %
Debt To Assets YoY -0.864 %
Debt To Assets IPRWA high: 0.856
SPH: 0.599
mean: 0.514
median: 0.496
low: 0.0
 Debt To Equity 2.291
Debt To Equity QoQ 3.146 %
Debt To Equity YoY -13.297 %
Debt To Equity IPRWA high: 5.354
SPH: 2.291
mean: 1.63
median: 1.459
low: 0.0
PRICE-BASED VALUATION
 Price To Book (P/B) 2.022
Price To Book QoQ 0.674 %
Price To Book YoY -8.588 %
Price To Book IPRWA high: 5.955
mean: 3.069
median: 2.341
SPH: 2.022
low: 0.415
 Price To Earnings (P/E) 27.27
Price To Earnings QoQ -180.657 %
Price To Earnings YoY -56.244 %
Price To Earnings IPRWA high: 113.155
mean: 65.022
median: 51.118
SPH: 27.27
low: 17.853
 PE/G Ratio -0.119
 Price To Sales (P/S) 3.418
Price To Sales QoQ -39.892 %
Price To Sales YoY 5.843 %
Price To Sales IPRWA high: 39.081
mean: 12.434
median: 9.865
SPH: 3.418
low: 0.334
FORWARD MULTIPLES
Forward P/E 36.437
Forward PE/G -0.159
Forward P/S 18.415
EFFICIENCY OPERATIONAL
 Operating Leverage -6.358
ASSET & SALES
 Asset Turnover Ratio 0.158
Asset Turnover Ratio QoQ 72.189 %
Asset Turnover Ratio YoY -1.522 %
Asset Turnover Ratio IPRWA high: 0.21
SPH: 0.158
mean: 0.114
median: 0.096
low: 0.031
 Receivables Turnover 3.727
Receivables Turnover Ratio QoQ 31.712 %
Receivables Turnover Ratio YoY -4.393 %
Receivables Turnover Ratio IPRWA high: 8.839
SPH: 3.727
mean: 2.77
median: 2.393
low: 0.769
 Inventory Turnover 1.83
Inventory Turnover Ratio QoQ 64.469 %
Inventory Turnover Ratio YoY -27.884 %
Inventory Turnover Ratio IPRWA high: 11.616
mean: 5.29
median: 3.642
low: 2.914
SPH: 1.83
 Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) 24.485
CASH CYCLE
 Cash Conversion Cycle Days (CCC) 55.118
Cash Conversion Cycle Days QoQ -9.312 %
Cash Conversion Cycle Days YoY 218.475 %
Cash Conversion Cycle Days IPRWA high: 71.269
SPH: 55.118
mean: 20.701
median: 13.243
low: -61.052
CAPITAL DEPLOYMENT
 Cash Conversion Ratio -10.117
 CapEx To Revenue -0.053
 CapEx To Depreciation -1.174
 
CAPITAL, LIQUIDITY & COVERAGE CAPITAL STRUCTURE
 Total Capital 1.9 B
 Net Invested Capital 1.9 B
 Invested Capital 1.9 B
 Net Tangible Assets -1.26 B
 Net Working Capital -36.61 M
LIQUIDITY
 Cash Ratio 0.005
 Current Ratio 0.866
Current Ratio QoQ 57.664 %
Current Ratio YoY 23.986 %
Current Ratio IPRWA high: 3.035
mean: 0.907
SPH: 0.866
median: 0.783
low: 0.531
 Quick Ratio 0.612
Quick Ratio QoQ 100.118 %
Quick Ratio YoY 18.9 %
Quick Ratio IPRWA high: 2.981
mean: 0.733
median: 0.678
SPH: 0.612
low: 0.48
COVERAGE & LEVERAGE
 Debt To EBITDA 17.366
 Cost Of Debt 1.422 %
 Interest Coverage Ratio 3.329
Interest Coverage Ratio QoQ -429.47 %
Interest Coverage Ratio YoY 64.888 %
Interest Coverage Ratio IPRWA high: 8.945
mean: 4.245
median: 3.764
SPH: 3.329
low: 1.765
 Operating Cash Flow Ratio 0.037
TIMING / LIQUIDITY
 Days Payables Outstanding (DPO) 56.803
DIVIDENDS
 Dividend Coverage Ratio 2.139
 Dividend Payout Ratio 0.467
 Dividend Rate 0.32
 Dividend Yield 0.017
PERFORMANCE GROWTH
 Asset Growth Rate 4.333 %
 Revenue Growth 75.226 %
Revenue Growth QoQ -501.248 %
Revenue Growth YoY -4.698 %
Revenue Growth IPRWA SPH: 75.226 %
high: 44.343 %
mean: 11.798 %
median: 9.408 %
low: -11.584 %
 Earnings Growth -229.63 %
Earnings Growth QoQ -270.37 %
Earnings Growth YoY 60.045 %
Earnings Growth IPRWA high: 442.105 %
mean: 21.223 %
median: 4.027 %
low: -30.921 %
SPH: -229.63 %
MARGINS
 Gross Margin 64.675 %
Gross Margin QoQ -0.034 %
Gross Margin YoY 6.758 %
Gross Margin IPRWA high: 78.864 %
SPH: 64.675 %
median: 43.607 %
mean: 39.892 %
low: 5.66 %
 EBIT Margin 17.756 %
EBIT Margin QoQ -315.905 %
EBIT Margin YoY 67.415 %
EBIT Margin IPRWA high: 61.514 %
mean: 31.034 %
median: 30.257 %
SPH: 17.756 %
low: 1.264 %
 Return On Sales (ROS) 18.265 %
Return On Sales QoQ -330.415 %
Return On Sales YoY 72.214 %
Return On Sales IPRWA high: 50.481 %
median: 30.257 %
mean: 28.646 %
SPH: 18.265 %
low: 1.212 %
CASH FLOW
 Free Cash Flow (FCF) -67.47 M
 Free Cash Flow Yield -5.329 %
Free Cash Flow Yield QoQ -331.293 %
Free Cash Flow Yield YoY 326.661 %
Free Cash Flow Yield IPRWA high: 5.767 %
median: 1.434 %
mean: 0.929 %
SPH: -5.329 %
low: -6.341 %
 Free Cash Growth -343.569 %
Free Cash Growth QoQ 422.594 %
Free Cash Growth YoY 85.728 %
Free Cash Growth IPRWA high: 380.46 %
median: -117.647 %
mean: -156.312 %
SPH: -343.569 %
low: -694.761 %
 Free Cash To Net Income -1.474
 Cash Flow Margin 2.726 %
 Cash Flow To Earnings 0.221
VALUE & RETURNS
 Economic Value Added 0.03
 Return On Assets (ROA) 1.951 %
Return On Assets QoQ -228.018 %
Return On Assets YoY 133.933 %
Return On Assets IPRWA high: 7.511 %
mean: 2.033 %
SPH: 1.951 %
median: 1.466 %
low: 0.664 %
 Return On Capital Employed (ROCE) 3.098 %
 Return On Equity (ROE) 0.073
Return On Equity QoQ -224.549 %
Return On Equity YoY 105.25 %
Return On Equity IPRWA high: 0.091
SPH: 0.073
median: 0.055
mean: 0.05
low: 0.019
 DuPont ROE 7.476 %
 Return On Invested Capital (ROIC) 3.358 %
Return On Invested Capital QoQ -542.424 %
Return On Invested Capital YoY 25.345 %
Return On Invested Capital IPRWA high: 7.82 %
SPH: 3.358 %
mean: 2.832 %
median: 2.504 %
low: 1.318 %

Six-Week Outlook

Expect range-bound behavior with downside risk carrying higher conviction than sustained upside until cash flow and leverage metrics show improvement. Technical directional indicators skew bearish in the near term while the MRO’s negative reading leaves scope for a corrective rally if fundamental headlines — specifically improvements in cash flow conversion or materially lower leverage metrics — appear. Watch momentum re-acceleration above the 50-day average and a sustained MACD recovery as confirmation that price can overcome the over-valuation flag; absent that, volatility should remain elevated and the stock likely trade within the $19.00 support and the near-term upper band defined by the 50-day average and analyst target dispersion.

About Suburban Propane Partners, L.P.

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. (NYSE:SPH) distributes and markets propane, renewable propane, fuel oil, and refined fuels across the United States. Through its Propane segment, the company supplies propane for residential uses such as space heating, water heating, cooking, and clothes drying, as well as for industrial applications including motor fuel for vehicles and equipment. The Fuel Oil and Refined Fuels segment delivers fuel oil, diesel, kerosene, and gasoline to residential and commercial customers, primarily for heating purposes. In the Natural Gas and Electricity segment, Suburban Propane markets natural gas and electricity to customers in deregulated markets in New York and Pennsylvania. The All Other segment provides sales, installation, and maintenance services for home comfort equipment, including heating systems, air cleaners, and space heaters. Serving a diverse customer base, including residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors, Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. maintains a strong presence on the east and west coasts, as well as in the Midwest and Alaska. Founded in 1945, the company is headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey.



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