United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Bought by Laffer Tengler Investments Inc.

Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. raised its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 13.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,066 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the quarter. Laffer Tengler Investments Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $282,783,000 after buying an additional 1,851,900 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,919,945 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $367,300,000 after acquiring an additional 685,259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after purchasing an additional 613,409 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 2.1 %

UPS stock opened at $116.79 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.40 and a 12 month high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $99.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $122.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.94.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.62%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on UPS shares. BMO Capital Markets raised United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Argus raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

United Parcel Service, Inc, a package delivery company, provides transportation and delivery, distribution, contract logistics, ocean freight, airfreight, customs brokerage, and insurance services. It operates through two segments, U.S. Domestic Package and International Package. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of express letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States.