United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Shares Up 1% – Time to Buy?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) shares shot up 1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $118.18 and last traded at $117.97. 707,040 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 4,420,066 shares. The stock had previously closed at $116.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UPS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $119.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets upgraded United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research upgraded United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on United Parcel Service in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.09.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market capitalization of $101.51 billion, a PE ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $120.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.25.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.52%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares during the period. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,934,000 after buying an additional 6,941 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,305,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 27.2% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 131,623 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $16,304,000 after buying an additional 28,108 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.