Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Decreases Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd trimmed its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 60.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 436 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 672 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $69,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. South Dakota Investment Council lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 17,472 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,747,000 after buying an additional 3,100 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 30,336 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,697,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at about $523,000. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 4,663 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $733,000 after buying an additional 564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,720 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Eva C. Boratto purchased 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $142.30 per share, with a total value of $199,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,220. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

United Parcel Service stock opened at $147.45 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $133.68 and a 1 year high of $192.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $149.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $151.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.05.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 37.42%. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 94.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $178.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.96.

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.