Meritage Portfolio Management Acquires 7,601 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 41.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 25,869 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 7,601 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $4,067,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MWA Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,125,000. Chesapeake Wealth Management grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 7,886 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 387,381 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,908,000 after purchasing an additional 44,721 shares in the last quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 58,184 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,148,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares during the period. Finally, Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the third quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 74,337 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,587,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.5 %

UPS stock traded up $0.77 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $147.39. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,551,401 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,351,542. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $133.68 and a 1 year high of $192.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $151.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.84 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 37.42%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.2 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.42%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $154.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Argus cut shares of United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, HSBC upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.96.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In other United Parcel Service news, Director Eva C. Boratto bought 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $142.30 per share, for a total transaction of $199,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at $199,220. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.