Providence Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,016 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,136,394 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,213,699,000 after purchasing an additional 370,705 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after acquiring an additional 613,409 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,289,624 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,080,170,000 after acquiring an additional 373,202 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 10,040,863 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,272,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277,328 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

UPS stock opened at $111.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $94.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.40 and a twelve month high of $154.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $126.58.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders 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 yield of 5.91%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 97.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on UPS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $119.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on United Parcel Service from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.57.

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.