United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Shares Down 0.6%

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price fell 0.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $136.04 and last traded at $136.05. 527,446 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 4,040,675 shares. The stock had previously closed at $136.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on UPS. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $178.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target 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. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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 note on Tuesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.55.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $141.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.31. The company has a market capitalization of $115.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.55, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 for the quarter was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.20 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.22 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,218,714 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,568,798,000 after buying an additional 178,394 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 87.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,152,900 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,854,180,000 after buying an additional 8,475,698 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,631.2% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,502,261 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,280,190,000 after buying an additional 14,410,073 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,607,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,510,517,000 after purchasing an additional 980,317 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,128,322,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.