October 2021: Total school bus fleet comparisons

Each month, LP Gas provides updates on the U.S. propane market, as well as the latest trends. The data for October 2021 focuses on propane-powered school bus fleets compared to non-propane.

Stock information for Ferrellgas and Suburban Propane is also provided.

PROPANE MARKET METRICS

Source: Propane Education & Research Council, National Profile

Source: Propane Education & Research Council, National Profile

Commentary: On the national level, school bus sales have increased by almost 50 percent since 2010, including part of the recovery from the 2008 financial crisis. This increase happened over all school bus types (A/B, C and D), but the majority of growth has come from the Type C (conventional) section, which includes most of the larger school buses. Out of an estimated 470,950 school buses in the U.S. in 2020, 22,458, or about 5 percent, were fueled by propane. As states continue to lower school transport emissions, propane school buses have been quickly expanding in market share, specifically in Oregon, Delaware and Wisconsin. In absolute numbers of buses, Texas, California and Pennsylvania are leading the way.

STOCK WATCH

Company	12-month chart (as of September ’21)	Price (9/22/21)	Current Yield	52-Week Low	52-Week High	YTD Price Performance
Ferrellgas – FGPR		$23.80	N/A	10.00	25.12	47.8%
Suburban Propane – SPH		15.13	8.6%	13.95	18.18	1.8%

Source: Company data, FactSet and Wells Fargo Securities LLC (SPH); Yahoo Finance (FGPR)

Note: Ferrellgas was relisted as FGPR, trading on OTC Markets, on 4/5/2021 due to corporate action.

Featured photo: Easyturn/iStock / Getty Images Plus/Getty Images