United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Stock Price Down 1.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) fell 1.1% on Tuesday after Susquehanna lowered their price target on the stock from $130.00 to $120.00. Susquehanna currently has a neutral rating on the stock. United Parcel Service traded as low as $108.35 and last traded at $108.73. 1,523,779 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 6,298,566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $109.99.

UPS has been the topic of several other reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report 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 on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.83.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. IMG Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 232.3% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock 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 cap of $92.86 billion, a PE ratio of 16.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $126.27.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.47 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.03%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

About United Parcel Service

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.