Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Sells 2,393 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC reduced its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,031 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 2,393 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,913,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of UPS. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,919,945 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $367,300,000 after acquiring an additional 685,259 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of UPS stock opened at $121.59 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $109.40 and a 1-year high of $158.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $121.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.78. 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 $103.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Baird R W lowered United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.00.

United Parcel Service 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.