United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Trading Up 0.6% – Here’s What Happened

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price traded up 0.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $126.96 and last traded at $126.96. 473,507 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 4,204,531 shares. The stock had previously closed at $126.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.29.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $107.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a fifty day moving average of $131.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $132.11.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. The firm had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.15%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UPS. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,064,000 after purchasing an additional 33,989 shares during the period. Syntax Research Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 3,770.3% in the third quarter. Syntax Research Inc. now owns 3,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 3,808 shares during the last quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 87,069 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,871,000 after acquiring an additional 9,250 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 24,500 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,340,000 after buying an additional 5,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp boosted its stake in United Parcel Service by 15.7% in the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 83,104 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,330,000 after acquiring an additional 11,305 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by 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.